She played her part in World War Two, so the sound of sirens is nothing new to centenarian Phyllis Pape.
But Phyllis, who turned 100 in March, was still a little startled when she pressed the button to test the public warning sirens at Huddersfield chemical giant Syngenta’s base at the firm’s manufacturing centre on Leeds Road.
As the sirens sounded through the town, she said: “Oh my goodness, have I just made that noise?”
The sirens can be heard from Almondbury to Quarmby, and from Jackson Bridge to Linthwaite, and for more than 30 years have blasted out once a year.
Syngenta is celebrating 100 years of manufacturing in Huddersfield. Back in March, the company read in the Examiner about Phyllis celebrating her 100th birthday and decided to ask her if she would like to sound the alarm.
Read more: Syngenta siren test - here's what to do in a real emergency
Phyllis, a resident at Mirfield’s Radcliffe Residential Home, was delighted to take part.
She worked packing parachutes for the armed forces during WWII as part of the Women’s Auxiliary Airforce and the sirens sound very similar to those used in wartime.
Richard Barker, her carer from the residential home, said: “It’s not every day I get to push a 100 year old lady to press the siren of a 100 year old manufacturing site. It’s been an experience I’ll remember.”
Hear the siren going off - it's pretty eerie!
Video: @robertmackiey/twitter
Phyllis, who never married nor had children, has a big family of nieces and nephews going down four generations, and is a great-great-aunt.
She was a civil servant and before that worked in her father’s fish shop, Pape’s Fish, that was on King Street, Huddersfield.
As she celebrated her birthday she said the three words which allowed her to reach the big 100 are “Eat, sleep, repeat.”
Syngenta put on a chauffeured car and tea and cake for Phyllis.
Community relations manager Carl Sykes said “We read about Phyllis celebrating her 100th birthday in the Examiner and immediately thought we would love to meet her and ask for her help in our centenary year.
“It’s been an absolute pleasure to meet Phyllis and we’ve also invited her to our Public Open Day on Saturday 17th September.”
The open day is being held as part of the firm’s celebrations to mark its centenary.
The firm tests its sirens on low volume every month and gives the full volume sound test once a year.
Every year the firm writes to 9,000 households locally in its public information zone and includes a copy of its community safety plan, giving advice on what to do if the sirens ever sound for real.
