Emergency-Communications

RI Section Emergency Coordinator Paul J Silverzweig, W1PJS, writes:

The last weekend in January is Winter Field Day… this is more for emergency communications practice than Summer Field Day, or at least is supposed to be… RI ARES will be sponsoring some activity for this event… mark your calendars for the Last Weekend in January… due to CoViD guidelines, it won’t be a mass group activity, so may be more like our NVIS exercise in nature… more to come…

Paul Silverzweig, W1PJS
RI Section Emergency Coordinator
All Hazards, FEMA/RIEMA ComL
MARS
RI Association of Emergency Managers
     Chair, Amateur Radio Committee
Portsmouth RI EMA
Trustee NB1RI Repeater Network
646-522-2262

RI Section Emergency Coordinator Paul J Silverzweig, W1PJS, writes:

First I’d like to wish you all a safe and healthy Thanksgiving. CoViD guidance makes this year unusual and for many of us we won’t be able to spend time with family… so enjoy the best you can, but stay safe!

Some other things:

RI ARES has successfully created a non-profit 501c3 charity, called the RI ARES Foundation, a distinct organization from the communications group. The main focus of funds raised by this Foundation will be to fund the NB1RI repeater network, with some funds being used to actually support the Foundation itself, namely tax filings and web services, credit card fees, bank fees, other state filings, and in some cases programs or trading for RI ARES membership.

You can find the foundation’s  website at http://www.RIARESfoundation.org and are welcome to donate, whether as little as an automatic $1 per month to as much as you wish… Jeremy K1JST is the lead on this, the Treasurer, and has done all the leg work… if you have questions please ask him.

The Directors and Officers include:

Paul W1PJS
Jeremy K1JST
John N1ZO
Sandy Hodell KA1RXB
Jim KB1MAO
Chief Aaron KC1EPX
Teri W1PUP

I hope you all can help.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all.

Paul Silverzweig, W1PJS
RI Section Emergency Coordinator
All Hazards, FEMA/RIEMA ComL
MARS
RI Association of Emergency Managers
     Chair, Amateur Radio Committee
Portsmouth RI EMA
Trustee NB1RI Repeater Network
646-522-2262

QST de W1AW 
ARRL Bulletin 34  ARLB034
From ARRL Headquarters 
Newington CT  November 17, 2020
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB034
ARLB034 Clear Frequencies Requested for Caribbean Hurricane Emergency Traffic

Stations handling emergency traffic during the response to Category 5 Hurricane Iota, just off the eastern coast of Nicaragua, are requesting clear frequencies.

Radio amateurs not involved in the emergency response are asked to avoid (plus/minus 5 KHz) the Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) and WX4NHC (National Hurricane Center) frequencies of 14.325 and 7.268 MHz, as well as a Honduran emergency net operation on 7.180 MHz (net control station is HR1JFA), and a Nicaraguan emergency net operating on 7.098 MHz.

With maximum sustained winds of 160 MPH, Hurricane Iota is expected to bring catastrophic winds, life-threatening storm surge, and torrential rainfall to Central America.

From ema.arrl.org:

On Tuesday Morning, 11/3/20, Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator, KD1CY-Rob Macedo, did a virtual Meet & Greet with Massachusetts VOAD to explain ARES role and how ARES can support Non-Governmental Organizations. The 30 minute meeting was well received by the VOAD leadership that participated. ARES has been a member within the VOAD organization since 2012.

VOAD stands for Volunteer Organizations Active in Disaster. The ARRL has a national level Memorandum of Understanding with VOAD and encourages section ARES programs to work with state VOADs. Examples of organizations that are part of VOAD include ARES traditional partners such as the American Red Cross, Salvation Army as well as Team Rubicon, various church groups that support disaster relief for individuals and families and many other organizations.

“We got to explain ARES role and what we can provide to Non-Government Organizations in both auxiliary communications, additional resources supporting communications and situational awareness information when normal communications means are up as well as what we can provide to them when other forms of communication fails. We also encouraged VOAD to look at ways we can help their organization based on their communications and technical needs after giving them some understanding of what we traditionally provide and explained to them all the MOUs ARES through the ARRL has with various organizations within VOAD and National VOAD” Macedo said.

Macedo reported that the members on the call understood how Amateur Radio plays a role and is often in the background performing important tasks that help their teams and other agencies. They were impressed with the presentation and look forward to future engagement both with Eastern Massachusetts ARES and Western Massachusetts ARES. “They asked for the Western Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator contact info which we provided to them along with a short presentation that we reviewed on the call and we look forward to a continued and stronger relationship with Massachusetts VOAD and the member agencies within VOAD going forward,” Macedo said.

The Eastern MA Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES) will conduct a Simulated Emergency Test on November 14, 2020 from 10 AM to 12 Noon (setup to start at 9 AM where needed) to test its capability in establishing communications with stations inside and outside of the section. Operation “Fall Fury” will attempt to build upon the lessons learned from past operational exercises. This SET is being done in coordination with a Red Cross national exercise also being held on Saturday 11/14/20.

The exercise scenario involves a fictional Category 1 hurricane which strikes MA/CT/RI as a hybrid coastal storm, battering Cape Cod and the Islands with winds ranging from 90-100 MPH. Eventually, hundreds of thousands of people in Eastern Massachusetts are left without power as the rain rapidly changes to heavy, wet snow.

“This exercise guideline is deliberately broad and generic in nature. ARES groups are free to adapt this scenario and conduct their exercise as needed for their group,” writes District Emergency Coordinator Frank O’Laughlin, WQ1O.

“This is also a great opportunity for new Amateur Radio Operators, whether they are involved in ARES or not, to check into nets, provide simulated information and exercise traffic, or just check in and learn how nets work and what ARES can do during an actual event. This includes the National Weather Service SKYWARN component of ARES” writes Rob Macedo, KD1CY, Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator.

With the ongoing COVID-19 situation in MA, it will be unlikely that groups will be able to operate at EOCs and other municipal locations. Therefore any activation of shelters will be simulated by role play. It is likely that most of the operations involved in this exercise will utilize home stations.

Some exercise objectives include:
• Simulate the activation of shelters in your area
• Simulate the activation of EOC stations in your area
• Establish and conduct a tactical net on simplex 2m FM/ repeater for your group
• Simulate contact with any Town EOC RACES stations
• Establish contact with other ARES districts where possible
• Establish an HF 75 meter voice net for all of MA (and potentially other areas)
• Pass an NTS type message on 2 meters VHF and/or 440 MHz
• Pass a SKYWARN and/or tactical message on voice 2 meters and on the HF net
• Optional components of the exercise to pass information digitally via Winlink and NBEMS (Narrow Band Emergency Messaging System)

For full details, see the “Eastern MA Simulated Emergency Test 2020 Scenario and Guidelines” document at https://ema.arrl.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/EasternMA-ARES-SET-11-14-20.pdf.

Chuck Motes, K1DFS, writes:

A big Thank You to all those in Connecticut who participated in the annual Section Emergency Test (S.E.T.) this year.  It took place during the first weekend of the month.

Members of the Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES) CT and NTS CT were active on their respective nets, and a large number of messages were sent and received.  Of particular note was the use of the ICS-213 Form, which is the heart of municipal, state and federal communications messages.  A lot of us picked up very successfully on that form.  Also in use (for the MARS COMEX) was a report called the SWEAT.  It’s the report the feds (military) use to assess conditions and emergencies nationwide.  It’s short, it’s quick and it’s fast.  Hams in Connecticut made extensive use of the report.

These reports were sent via voice, via digital on HF and VHF and via Winlink radio and internet.  One set of these reports numbering 52 in total was relayed to MARS via 60 meters in one burst using MT-63 digital.  This was a month-long opportunity for hams to contact MARS stations directly, and is authorized through the end of October.

The MARS COMEX (Army and Air Force) was terminated normally on 23 October.

Thanks to all — hams, ARES, NTS, especially the Section Emergency Coordinator, the District Emergency Coordinators and the NTS officials–everyone who participated in the S.E.T. and in the COMEX.  Call it a resounding success.

73 to all, and have a great Halloween!

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ARRL Connecticut Section
Section Manager: Charles I Motes Jr, K1DFS
k1dfs@arrl.org
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