The police department unknowingly used the siren from the horror film franchise to notify residents in Crowley, La. about the 9 P.M. curfew during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Apr 8, 2020
AceShowbiz - Louisiana Police's attempt to notify local people of the city's preemptive measure amid the coronavirus outbreak has gone wrong. The police department has mistakenly used the siren from "The Purge" to signal a curfew during the city's quarantine.
In order to stop the spread of coronavirus, the city has implemented a 9 P.M. curfew which lasts until 6 A.M. for residents. In a video uploaded by local news station KATC, Crowley police drove around the city's Acadia Parish playing the noise, which some found eerily familiar, to alert people to the nightly curfew.
Following the use of the siren, a Crowley Police Department Facebook post, which has since been deleted, received over 500 complaints about the familiar noise. In a statement, the Acadia Parish Sheriff's Department admitted they also received "numerous complaints" about the siren, prompting them to issue an apology.
Jimmy Broussard, the city's police chief, said that he wasn't aware the noise was from the horror film franchise and stated that the police department won't use any other type of siren in the future. Acadia Parish sheriff K.P. Gibson additionally said in a statement, "Last night a 'Purge Siren' was utilized by the Crowley Police Department as part of their starting curfew. We have received numerous complaints with the belief that our agency was involved in this process. We were not involved in the use of the 'Purge Siren' and will not utilize any type of siren for this purpose."
"The Purge", which began with its first movie in 2013, depicts a night in America in which all crimes, including murder, are legal for a 12-hour period. The Blumhouse Productions project has spanned a total of four feature films, including the latest released in 2018, "The First Purge", which is a prequel movie. A television series of the same title and based on the dystopian action horror films has also aired on USA Network since 2018.
