More than 900 sirens will be replaced in 16 cities nationwide as part of a project by the Ministry of Interior (MVR).
Georgi Borisov, Director of the Communications and Information Systems Directorate at the MVR, stated that the new sirens will cover 75% of the population, extending the system’s reach to an additional 169 municipalities. The current operational system was originally installed in 1970, Borisov noted.
The project’s funding amounts to BGN 75,087,050, with a planned implementation period of three years, concluding in December 2027.
The objective is to enhance public protection during natural disasters by expanding the early warning and public alert system at the regional level.
The nationwide alert system was initiated in 2008, aimed at gradually replacing outdated electromechanical sirens with modern ones that offer improved functionality and reliability in public notifications.
Currently, the system covers 11 regional centers with sirens installed — Sofia City, Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas, Ruse, Pleven, Pazardzhik, Montana, Smolyan, Kardzhali, and Stara Zagora. Four other regional centers — Vratsa, Pernik, Vidin, and Yambol — have regional control nodes without sirens. Additionally, sirens are deployed in 108 municipal centers, in Tsarevo, Ahtopol, the village of Lozenets, and all settlements within the 30-kilometer emergency protection zone around the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant.
With the implementation of this project, the system’s coverage will expand to 16 additional regional centers — Vratsa, Sliven, Dobrich, Shumen, Haskovo, Yambol, Veliko Tarnovo, Gabrovo, Vidin, Targovishte, Lovech, Silistra, Razgrad, Pernik, Kyustendil, and Blagoevgrad.
Plans also include further development of the siren system in the Sofia region and 61 municipal centers, including the modernization of parts of the existing infrastructure.