Posted by Mike on 1/14/2009, 10:29 am
Oregon's radio hams assist as 911 system fails
The ARRL reports that ham radio stepped in when a 911 emergency call in system failed in Oregon just prior to Christmas. This as a massive freezing weather front hit the region.
The National Weather Service said that the winter storm hit the North and Central Oregon coast, as it made its way East to the Cascades mountain range. According to District Emergency Coordinator David Kidd, KA7OZO, radio amateurs in Clatsop County, were called on to provide direct emergency communications for the 911 system which was in need of support.
Two ARES members along with the resident deputy manned the sheriff's sub-station in Jewell. They provided 24 hour radio communication services to the county Emergency Operations Center.
Other radio amateurs provided 911 services for four villages and hamlets in the southern part of the county. There, residents in the area were told to go to ham radio operators and have them relay their needed service requests to
the county EOC.
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The major ice storm that hit New England December 11 has pretty much gone away http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2008/12/15/10506/?nc=1, but with forecasters calling for more winter weather in the next few days, hams are still on the job. During the storm, Amateur Radio operators from all over the area responded to calls for assistance from various served agencies, and local leadership does not expect the need for the hams to lessen anytime soon.
According to Eastern Massachusetts Section Emergency Coordinator Rob Macedo, KD1CY, almost 400,000 customers in Massachusetts lost power at the height of the storm. Phone service, particularly landline service, was disrupted in some areas. Crews have been working hard to restore power to residents, Macedo said: "As of late Sunday evening, almost 140,000 were without power in Massachusetts with over double that number in New Hampshire. On Wednesday, the number of homes without power had dropped to 45,000-50,000 in both states." Southern New England received 2-4 inches of rainfall; isolated higher amounts caused river, stream and urban flooding. Strong winds in the region resulted in tree and wire damage, as well as coastal flooding along the shoreline.
In Western Massachusetts, Section Emergency Coordinator John Ruggerio, N2YHK, reported that ARES units in his Section responded to calls for assistance from local EOCs. "EOC operations in Worcester were secured on Monday evening, as the shelters were closed and power was restored to most areas at that time," Ruggerio said.
"Amateur Radio operators from the North and South Shore of Eastern Massachusetts assisted with operations in Western Massachusetts, fulfilling needs from Saturday night into Monday morning," Ruggerio recounted. "ARES units in the Western Massachusetts Section provided support during the day on Monday for the town of Gardner in Franklin County. An additional team from Eastern Massachusetts -- including one ham from the Rhode Island/Massachusetts border -- came in on Monday evening. That team helped out in Gardner until 12:30 Tuesday afternoon when the shelters and communications for the local hospital were no longer required, as power was restored to much of the area."
Ruggerio said that the local hospital in Gardner lost phone service for much of the day starting Monday morning. "They got service back later that evening, but until then, Amateur Radio was the only means of two-way communications between the hospital and EOC." Message traffic on prescription fills and other priority, but non-emergency traffic, were fulfilled during that timeframe, he said
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On Dec. 12, more than 100 students at Rosemary Clark Middle School attended a presentation on Ham radio given by local Amateur Radio Emergency Services Inc. (ARES) representatives.
Students in Carol Hunn, Susan Mora, and Ben Veloz's classes attended the presentation to learn about the use of Ham radio in today's society.
The term "Ham" allegedly derives from the last names of three scientists, Hertz, Armstrong, and Marconi, who developed amateur radio use.
At the beginning of the presentation, Steve Bird and Jerry Fuge told the class to think of two things: Where are radios used for communicating today, and name a job where math is not used.
Fuge, president of ARES, and Bird, vice president, gave sixth-grade students a short introduction into the world of radios that existed before the world of iPods, etc.
Bird, a retired federal engineer, made a promise to a friend of his father that he would get a license to operate Ham radios. At the same time, he decided to volunteer his time for the good of the community by joining ARES.
Bird said, "After I retired, I needed something to do so I got my license and joined ARES. I've only had my license for two years, but I find it quite enjoyable and rewarding." As a government engineer, Bird holds several patents on designs still used today by various entities. Since they are still classified, "they cannot be discussed here."
Fuge is a former U.S. Army MARS (military amateur radio service) operator. He has been licensed for at least 15 years and a member of ARES for six years.
Bird taught that there are three basic forms of radio waves, rhythmic (radio), light and sound. He then showed how these waves pass through objects to radios inside buildings and other internal locations by contacting another operator at a California station. He added that "waves also travel into space and back."
Fuge taught that there are three forms of sound waves which include audio, micro and radar. He also showed the kids how telegraphs were sent over wires and the use of Morse code, including the emergency call, SOS.
The kids discovered that Bird had been a spy for the government and that there are no jobs that do not use math in some form.
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Oregon
According to David Kidd, KA7OZO, District Emergency Coordinator for Oregon's District One, the storms moved into his area on Wednesday, January 7 and continued throughout the rest of the week. ARES® units in Clatsop, Columbia and Tillamook Counties were activated in advance of the storms that were expected to bring flooding, mud slides, blocked roadways from downed trees, as well as the potential loss of various utilities.
In Lewis County, hams were prepared for the pending storms. On Wednesday, January 7, the Lewis County Board of County Commissioners declared the county a disaster area "due to exhausted resources and flood level predictions at or exceeding 1996, 2006, and 2007 flood levels." Ham radio operators with local ARES units were placed on standby by the Lewis County EOC.
According to Lewis County Emergency Management Deputy Director Ross McDowell, the unincorporated areas of Packwood and Randle had been without land-line telephone service since January 7. "Repairs cannot take place until the flood waters recede. This area is without 911 service due to all alternate facilities being under water. Ham operators/radios will be used in emergencies [to facilitate 911 services]."
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