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The ARES E-Letter
October 19, 2005
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Rick Palm, K1CE, Editor

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ARES reports, other related contributions, editorial questions or
comments: <k1ce@arrl.net>;
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+ 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!)