Mildly alarming
I’m trying to find out exactly what it’s all about, and maybe someone will let me know, but it seems the police, or coastguard, or someone has set up an early warning system on Symi. I’m not sure what it’s meant to signify as I’ve not heard an announcement (maybe I missed one?) but we’ve now got this air raid siren thing which goes off every now and then. I heard it last week and assumed it was something to do with the coastguard boat that was out in the bay, but yesterday it went off around 11.00 and stayed ‘going off’ (i.e. on) for quite a while, and no sign of the boat. Then it went off again, and again.
There was no sign of imminent invasion, or anyone in trouble, in fact the bells carried on ringing, the guys unloading the van next door carried on chatting and the world seemed to go on as normal. I assume it was a test – but of what? Does this thing go off when someone has been spotted wearing socks with their sandals? Is it to warn the island that the tax inspectors are on their way? Maybe it’s to let everyone know that their coffee is ready. It could be anything, but I suspect it’s more important than any of those. As soon as I find out I’ll let you know, in the meantime, I don’t think there is any reason to be alarmed.
Actually, I’ve now been informed that it’s to do with the military, a drill of some sort – so all is well.
It reminded me of working on summer holiday camps back in the 1980s in Crowthorne, in Berkshire, a few miles distant from Broadmoor, the high security psychiatric hospital. We were working with children with epilepsy in a rather remote old house and grounds not far from the hospital through the woods. They would test the alarm every Monday morning at a certain time and we’d all know that’s what it was, so no panic. Not until the times when it went off at unexpected hours of the day and night. Then we had a Jack Bauer, 24, style protocol in place which basically meant locking everyone inside until the all clear went off. It happened with alarming regularity – but never actually amounted to anything more than a false alarm. Oh, apart from once, but even then we were all safe.
Anyhow. Today is a visit to the dentist day, some piano playing this afternoon and then all clear for the evening. Friday is a day around the island on the boat, the first (and probably last) of the year for us as we don’t often get the time off work. And then a weekend of not much at all is planned, so no news there then. I must away now and create a chicken pie for lunch, after clearing the courtyard of tamarisk shedding and dead leaves from the vine and, of course, seeing to the cat who is very grumpy today and already on his third, semi-ignored, breakfast. Ah, perhaps that’s what the new alarm system is! It signals Jack’s next feeding time and he is in cahoots with the authorities. Wouldn’t surprise me.
