ARES Letter for October 19, 2005
================= The ARES E-Letter October 19, 2005 ================= Rick Palm, K1CE, Editor ================================================= ARES reports, other related contributions, editorial questions or comments: <k1ce@arrl.net>; ================================================= + The View from Flagler County Hurricane Wilma is a whopping Category Five storm with record low barometric pressure, and apparently its travel plans include the Florida peninsula. The ARRL-affiliated Flagler Emergency Communications Association (FECA) met last night at the county EOC to discuss plans for activation of ARES. (FECA assets and expertise serve as a platform for ARES planning and operations here in the county). Last hurricane season, my YL Joanne, W1GUN, and I grappled with the decision to evacuate the area, or "shelter in place" at home. This time, there will be no decision-making: as an RN, I'll take Joanne with me to the hospital in Daytona Beach where I work. We'll stay there until it's all over, while I care for critically-ill patients on the ICU. Last year, one storm separated a patient's room from the exterior of the building, creating a gaping, breezy hole through which you could look down five floors to the parking lot below. I received an e-mail message from my old friend Arnie Coro, CO2KK, from Havana, Cuba: amateurs there are charging their batteries and getting ready for another deployment. Is it November 30 yet? - K1CE ======================== In this Issue: + Rain Event in the Northeast Brings Out ARES + Katrina Efforts Winding Down + Colorado Team Returns from Hurricane Zones + Rhode Island's Finest Cited for Katrina Effort + Gwinnett County ARES "Geek Squad" Assists Agency Center + Reflections on Hurricane Jeanne + Towards A National Data Base of Amateurs with Skills + "Old Technology" + PowerPole Connectors + More on ARES as NGO + ARES/RACES Emergency Coordinator Checklist + More on FEMA Training Opportunities + Happy Birthday: The Big Bend Emergency Net turns 28 + Clarification: Modification of Amateur Radio Equipment for Use by MARS, CAP + K1CE for a Final ======================== + Rain Event in the Northeast Brings Out ARES The last couple of weeks saw many straight days of rain in the region causing major flooding, evacuations, injuries and deaths. New Hampshire SEC Dave Colter, WA1ZCN, reported that ARES worked the southwestern part of the state, especially around Alstead and Keene, supporting Red Cross, the state Bureau of Emergency Management, and the City of Keene during the flooding emergency there. Northern New Jersey SEC Steve Ostrove, K2SO, said that the Passaic County ARES/RACES supported the Office of Emergency Management there. Western Massachusetts SM Bill Voedisch, W1UD, reported that the Franklin County EOC was activated after flooding in Greenfield. In Rhode Island, the Pawtuxet River started to overflow its banks in Cranston and West Warwick. People in Cranston's flood zone were to be evacuated, with a shelter opened. The state's EMA opened its Command Center and called for an ARES net to be started. Within one hour, ten ARES members were on hand, ready for assignment. In West Warwick, ARES opened the Wakefield School shelter, equipped with Amateur Radio gear. The Warwick EMA used ARES and its repeater for communication with West Warwick for coordination of shelter volunteers. Red Cross HQ had ARES member Ludgerio Fernandes, K1LAF, on the repeater for communication with the Smithfield EMA, Warwick EMA, West Warwick Shelter, West Greenwich Shelter and the Rhode Island SEC Seán Brennan, KE1AB. This was the first time in a long time that Amateur Radio was used in Rhode Island during a shelter and EMA event. Perhaps it is due to the fact that 99% of those operating for the Red Cross and local EMAs are members of the recently revitalized Rhode Island ARES. [Thanks Seán Brennan, KE1AB, Rhode Island Section Emergency Coordinator <ke1ab@arrl.net>;] At press time, in Eastern Massachusetts, ARES has been activated in the city of Taunton for the potential collapse of the Whittenton Pond Dam on the Mill River. This story made CNN yesterday. The Taunton EOC is activated along with one shelter to support evacuees being asked to leave an area that would be susceptible to flooding in the event of collapse of the dam. Eastern Massachusetts ARES SEC Rob Macedo, KD1CY, and Region II RACES Radio Officer, Bob Mims, WA1OEZ are monitoring the 147.135 MHz Taunton repeater. Local officials have stated that potentially, the dam could fail at anytime. See the NWS Taunton Flash Flood Warning Statement at this link: <http://kamala.cod.edu/ma/latest.wgus51.KBOX.html> See also <http://ares.ema.arrl.org/> for Eastern Massachusetts ARES information and sitreps. [Thanks to SEC Rob Macedo, KD1CY, for this report]. + Katrina Efforts Winding Down [The following was written by Greg Sarratt, W4OZK, ARRL Alabama Section Manager. His words express so eloquently the experience of ARES leaders and volunteers over the course of the last couple of months.] Today, on the 37th day of Amateur Radio operations at the Montgomery, Alabama, American Red Cross center, the radios were powered down for a final time. It was a strange feeling packing, saying goodbye and then walking out of the old Super K-Mart building knowing I would not return tomorrow. It was a pleasure working with the American Red Cross personnel. My job was made easier with their support. The radio amateurs that worked on the Montgomery HQ team were all fine, quality men and women. My staff included dedicated amateurs from all over the United States and Canada as well as many local operators. We developed many processes, practices and procedures that will make the next time easier. The volunteers traveled on their own dollar to come do the right thing. Using their Amateur Radio skills, they helped people in great need. Many amateurs helped people and served agencies in other ways as well. We also supplied amateurs for other agencies including the Salvation Army, the Southern Baptists, and many emergency management agencies and operating centers. I'm looking forward to visiting ARRL HQ to review this successful operation. We will plan and improve. I appreciate the League's help, support and patience. Over the next few days I plan to review my notes, ideas, double check the deployed roster and work on an after action report. This effort was a success and a huge help to the people and workers in the devastated region. Many non-amateurs now know what works when all else fails. -- Greg Sarratt, W4OZK, ARRL Alabama Section Manager ___________________ ARRL HQ staffer Steve Ewald, WV1X, conducted the final scheduled Gulf Coast teleconference of SMs and SECs, thanking them for their Herculean efforts. As busy as these dedicated ARRL Field Organization leaders were, they found time to communicate reports of ARES activity for the benefit of the rest of us. Outside support for Jasper County, Texas, operations [Jasper is 75 miles north of Beaumont, and has 7500 citizens] was no longer needed as the Salvation Army was planning on suspending operations, and repeater service has been restored to the area. Local ARES personnel can now provide any support needed. Power is becoming available even in the smaller communities. Infrastructure has been largely rehabilitated. Bill Swan, K5MWC, North Texas SEC thanked all ARES operators, including those who had volunteered but were not called. The situation had been that without power, repeaters in the area were only usable with an on-site generator, constantly refueled, presenting a daunting task. Communications were negatively impacted, but 40-meters (SSB) was used by amateurs as the sole viable means of supporting the Salvation Army (and other organizations) who were distributing food. The communications promoted expediency in food delivery operations. [From reports by SEC Jerry Reimer, KK5CA, South Texas] _______________ The situation in South Texas is still being evaluated. As residents (and radio amateurs) return, the extent of local ARES capability is being re-evaluated. The North Texas section remains on standby to assist, if required. + Colorado Team Returns from Hurricane Zones The Colorado ARES/RACES Disaster Response Team (DRT) recently returned from the Gulf coast after supplying communications support there. The Winlink mode proved to be beneficial during their operations. The ARES/RACES DRT is the field deployment amateur support communications group of the Colorado Division of Emergency Management (CDEM). They provide emergency communication for state agencies, as well as county and local emergency management agencies, and disaster relief organizations. The DRT primarily supports wildland fire operations, but also gets called for tornadoes, floods and blizzards -- often in remote areas of the Colorado high country. "As a joint ARES/RACES unit, we are one of the few Amateur Radio response teams available to provide communication support around the country, as we did during Hurricane Katrina," said Wes Wilson, K0HBZ, the ARES Emergency Coordinator/RACES Officer for the team. "We can get called out on a moment's notice at any time." See <www.codrt.org> + Rhode Island's Finest Cited for Katrina Effort Rhode Island ARES/MARS volunteer Matt Hackman, KB1FUP, who deployed to the Gulf disaster region from September 9-25, has returned safely home. The city of Warwick, Rhode Island, presented Hackman with a city citation for his service. SEC Sean Brennan, KE1AB, along with Section Manager Bob Beaudet, W1YRC, presented Hackman with two commendation certificates from ARRL. At the presentation held in conjunction with a regular Warwick CERT volunteers meeting, Matt spoke informally to the CERT members describing some of his experiences. The stories brought a full measure of reality to the volunteers' training. His real-life anecdotal comments cannot be found in any training guide and were very useful. Pictures of the presentation appear on <http://www.arrl.org/sections/?sect=RI> + Gwinnett County ARES "Geek Squad" Assists Agency Center The Gwinnett County (Georgia) Emergency Management Agency (EMA) had a different kind of request for Gwinnett ARES in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. With the Atlanta metro area receiving thousands of evacuees, three Joint Resource Recovery Centers were opened. The American Red Cross was the cornerstone with additional resources from numerous federal, state and local agencies. Gwinnett ARES was called to investigate alternatives for Internet connectivity in the event that ordered services were not in place when the center opened. The EMA Director knew Gwinnett ARES was exploring a county-wide WiFi network for emergency support. ARES members assisted the agencies with installing their local networks in anticipation of DSL Internet service. This would allow the agencies to connect to their home-base computer systems. The evening before the center opened, the connections were completed and as a result of ARES support, all systems were ready to go live, immediately. For the next three weeks, Gwinnett ARES provided a "geek squad" that supported the center's operation, including a telephone/radio channel directory, telephone repair, daily distributing and checking-in 50 GMRS radios, configuring laptop computers for WiFi access to the Internet, using their radio voices to make announcements on the paging system, and moving telephone terminations as the situation changed. In addition, ARES members helped staff the command center, directing visitors and responding to questions posed by the public. This one-stop shop proved very successful. More than 11,000 clients (or households) were served. Young evacuees were enrolled in the Gwinnett County school system. The local EMA was appreciative of the support provided by Gwinnett ARES. More than 700 person-hours were contributed by Gwinnett ARES members. -- Stan Edwards, WA4DYD, Gwinnett County EC, <http://www.gwinnettares.org/> + Reflections on Hurricane Jeanne After working an ARES post during Hurricane Jeanne in Florida, I was forced to reflect on why I was volunteering my time, effort and equipment. Our team had supported City Hall, the primary Fire Station, and the EOC. It hadn't occurred to me to question why we were there; I just knew as a radio amateur, my job was to provide communications in a time of emergency. I happened to be assigned to City Hall. Citizens could call City Hall to speak to a live person about the storm and their situation. My job was to relay ARES weather reports from the field to the City Manager and personnel conducting the telephone operation. These reports enabled their safety and the public safety. After the event, I returned home and found that we had just lost power. I was putting my three-year-old son to bed when he asked me about the storm and where I had been all day and why. I told him that I was helping people with the storm. After a series of "whys" and my patient explanations, he gave me a big hug. I not only knew that I had gotten my message through but I knew he was proud of me. Between searching for the accurate but simple answers for why I do what I do along with receiving the approval for being away from my young son, I knew that I had made the right choice and would do it again in a heartbeat. -- Jim Billings, KB8LXC, Flagler County (Florida) ARES <kb8lxc@yahoo.com>; + Towards A National Data Base of Amateurs with Skills I believe I have now seen reference to three different databases of volunteers for future deployments. The ARES community should take a lesson from the Red Cross: the Red Cross volunteers that I worked with on the Gulf coast were notified in a timely manner and requested to deploy because the Red Cross had a database of their skills. ARRL should have one, too. While this is certainly not a trivial project, it's not rocket science either. If the ARRL is really serious about improving Amateur Radio assistance in times of disaster, addressing this issue should be at the top of the organization's list. Katrina demonstrated that trying to gather the information after the fact just isn't effective. Here's a project that is tangible and demonstrates ARRL's commitment to making Amateur Radio more relevant in the public safety communication arena. -- Steve Bonine, KB9X [The author provided disaster relief work at Hattiesburg and Stennis, Mississippi]. + "Old Technology" [The following are responses to the last issue's "Final Note" concerning Amateur Radio as old and new technology]. We may be "old technology" but we get the job done and, as illustrated during the hurricane response, our folks saved the day when new technology proved to be fragile. I heard the term "old technology" in reference to HF first at a Y2K conference, from a FEMA guy in 1999. The definition may be accurate but fails to denote that "old" technology's reliability and capability serves well when coupled with the commitment and can-do ethic of the amateur operator. I am proud of all those who served in the unprecedented Katrina response and further commend all those in the ARRL who for years have served to train, represent and support this good work. Thanks for your good comments and your support of those who serve. - 73, Pat McPherson, WW9E, SATERN Net Manager. [The SATERN net was one of the preeminent on-the-air services for the Katrina effort. All of us are proud of your organization's work, Pat. - K1CE] Some feedback regarding your FINAL NOTE in the latest ARES newsletter: My response when I am addressed with this issue of Amateur Radio's viability is, "IT'S SIMPLE AND IT WORKS." When I was operating at the command center following Hurricane Charlie, a note on the white board at the command console had a quote (with date and time) from one of the Incident Commanders. It read: "Amateur Radio is the only reliable communications into the affected area." The old KISS principle surely seems to apply here. -- Fred Kleber, K9VV + PowerPole Connectors Many ARES E-Letter readers were confused by the offer of Anderson PowerPoles being available from the San Francisco ARES. They are available now and we expect them to be available into the indefinite future. Over 2000 pairs sold. Proceeds go to ARES. See <http://www.wcf.com/sfares/fun> -- Dave Gomberg, NE5EE <gomberg1@wcf.com>; + More on ARES as NGO The American economy is commoditized: each chunk of the "value chain" from finding raw material to waste product removal is undertaken by purpose-designed organizations whose business it is to be the best in their slice of the economy. With service organizations, those who would serve must demonstrate more than good intentions -- they must demonstrate competency in skill and organization. The old ways, collegial, often improvised, and "more heart than head" are insufficient -- and ruled out by served agencies (customers). ARES represents a fine outline of a proven structure. But it depends too much on ad hoc, local circumstances and cannot be easily replicated nationally, depending exclusively on the available resources of the local amateur community. There are varying standards of performance, skill level, and commitment. Wouldn't it be better to treat ARES more like a franchise, locally owned and operated, but with national brand identity, purchasing power, quality control and organizational control? Consider the multifaceted attacks on Amateur Radio from BPL, wireless communication interests, the Internet, and we see that a unified response to emergency amateur communications becomes almost a necessary prerequisite to our survival as a service, to speak nothing of what we can offer the American citizenry if properly organized. In short, I too recommend the ARRL move ARES towards an institutionalized NGO, an equal player at the table with the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, and others who have made the effort in time, organization and money to institutionalize their "value proposition" such that it need not be recreated with each local change in the political wind. Fact is, this is no longer our decision: it has been made for us by the powers that be. -- Joseph Ames Jr., W3JY, Delware County (Pennsylvania) AEC ARES/RACES <www.delcoares.org> + ARES/RACES Emergency Coordinator Checklist The following EC checklist comes from the West Central Florida Section to promote ARES and RACES unification and better local emergency management agency cooperation. If your ARES organization has a close working relationship with your local emergency management agency, you should be able to answer "yes" to a majority of the questions. 1. What is the name of your county's Director of Emergency Management? Do you have a working relationship with him or her? If the two of you passed each other on the street, would he recognize you? Would you recognize him? 2. What is the physical street address of your county's EOC? Do you have 24/7 access to your county's EOC? When was the last time you were there? 3. Does ARES/RACES have a seat assigned at the EOC? Are your team members credentialed by the EOC? 4. If a letter was sent to your county's EOC addressed to ARES/RACES or Amateur Radio, would you receive it? 5. If a new radio amateur moved into your county and called the county EOC asking for information on joining ARES/RACES, would the EOC staff know what they were inquiring about? Would they refer the caller to you? 6. As the Emergency Coordinator, are you paged or called to report to the EOC each time the EOC is activated? Does the EOC and 911 dispatch center have your contact information contained in its list of essential EOC personnel? 7. Is your ARES/RACES organization written into your county's Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (CEMP)? 8. Are you using the county EOC to hold ARES/RACES meetings and training activities for your members? 9. How many of your county's paid EOC staff are Amateur Radio operators? Have you approached them about becoming hams and offered them training? 10. Does the EOC have county owned Amateur Radio equipment permanently installed in the EOC or do you bring your own equipment when reporting to the EOC? If you answered negatively to several of these questions, it may be time to reevaluate and strengthen the relationship between your ARES/RACES organization and your local county emergency management agency. - Gary Sessums, KC5QCN, RACES Officer/ARES Emergency Coordinator, Hillsborough County, Florida + More on FEMA Training Opportunities For information about the FEMA course on Amateur Radio Resources, please see: <http://www.training.fema.gov/emiweb/STCourses/crsdesc/G250_6.html> This course is designed to train government employees about the mission of Amateur Radio operations. - Carl Zellich, AA4MI, ARRL Assistant Director, Southeastern Division, <aa4mi@arrl.net>; + Happy Birthday: The Big Bend Emergency Net turns 28 In the mid '70s, shortly after the Big Bend (Texas) Amateur Radio Club was formed, radio amateurs were called to search for a missing girl. Communication was provided for the Texas Rangers. The event led to the founding of the Big Bend Emergency Net. The net meets every Sunday at 8:30 A.M. Central Time, and has been on the air since September 18, 1977. By 1978, the net had 20 members. The net now has 111 members, with an average of 35 check-ins each session. The net has been activated many times over the years. The biggest event covered was the Saragosa, Texas, tornado of May 1987. The net was on the air within an hour after the tornado struck. Communication with the state EOC was established, the sole link until the next day when a single phone line was connected to the Big Bend ARC emergency van on site in Saragosa. The Big Bend Emergency Net could not have continued without the faithful participation of its many members over the years. I would like to thank all of those that have checked in. - Bob Ward, WA5ROE, Net Manager + Clarification: Modification of Amateur Radio Equipment for Use by MARS, CAP MARS and CAP operators may (and frequently do) legally modify Amateur Radio equipment for their use in the MARS and CAP frequency bands, which are deliberately near amateur allocations for exactly this purpose. Indeed, neither MARS or CAP require certificated equipment, precisely so that modified ham equipment can be used. We regret any confusion stemming from a related item published in a previous issue. - K1CE + K1CE for a Final I received the following e-mail from Tennessee radio amateur Richard Skelton, KI4EMJ, that, frankly, made my day: "Thanks for this newsletter--it makes me even more proud to be a ham than I already was!" You're welcome, Richard. (Hey, good first name, too!)
