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 Previous: International Students Gain Amateur Radio Appreciation During USTTI Course |  Next: Quick Identification, Response Curbs Repeater Problem |
 California burning: The California fires as viewed from the International Space Station on October 26. Lake Arrowhead is visible in this view. [NASA Photo] |
NEWINGTON, CT, Oct 27, 2003--As wind-driven fires continue to burn in California, Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) and Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES) teams have activated to assist local authorities and relief organizations. Statewide, authorities report 11 separate fires and at least 13 dead. Gov Gray Davis has declared states of emergency in four counties. Eleven of the fire-related deaths occurred in San Diego County, where incredibly fast-moving fires driven by hot, dry Santa Ana winds have burned over upward of 25,000 acres. ARRL San Diego Section Manager Kent Tiburski, K6FQ, says the fires encroached on more-populated areas, forcing thousands to flee and destroying homes and businesses. Two of the dead reportedly included a couple trying to escape the flames in their car.
"Absolutely unbelievable!" is how Tiburski
described the situation today. "This is the worst fire that has ever hit the
county, and fire crews are not in control of the multiple blazes at this time."
The Ramona Fire--the major blaze--has sparked about a half-dozen fires in San
Diego County. "The fire currently is in the City of San Diego," Tiburski said.
"It's all around us right now, to the north and to the east."
He reminded all amateurs to keep an ear on their local repeaters for further developments. So far, he estimated, some 100 ham radio volunteers are participating, many of them supporting the efforts of relief agencies such as the Red Cross and The Salvation Army.
"We're staffing six shelters throughout the county," Tiburski said, adding that resources were being stretched thin. The Red Cross and The Salvation Army were sharing duties at the shelters, which were providing refuge for some 1200 people. Tiburski estimates another 5000 are staying elsewhere. Additional hams have deployed to San Diego-area emergency management offices and hospitals.
The majority of support communication was
taking place on VHF, Tiburski said, with Lyons Peak (146.265 MHz, CTCSS 107.2
Hz) as the primary repeater for ARES communicators. Other amateurs are
maintaining nets, and hams in San Diego County have been making use of HF
because fires have compromised or damaged some repeaters. The San Diego ARES Net has been activated on 7.233
MHz with 3.905 MHz as a backup. The Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network
(SATERN) also has been using 7.233 MHz as a coordinating frequency. Tiburski is
requesting clear frequencies on 7.233 and 3.905 MHz to handle emergency
traffic. Hams are not handling health-and-welfare traffic at this time.
ARES members also have been helping Red Cross Disaster Assessment Teams (DATs), but Tiburski said they had limited mobility at this stage of the fire. Schools and businesses have closed for the emergency, and some highways remain closed to traffic. San Diego International Airport was shut down over the weekend and evacuated.
San Diego-Area SATERN Coordinator Paul Cook,
N6RPF, reports that SATERN has been assisting with communication for a number
of canteens in the San Diego area and that the situation is busy and intense.
He says some broadcast radio stations have had to leave the air because of the
fires' proximity.
 Another view of wildfires in the California mountains, as seen from the International Space Station. [NASA Photo] |
Among the newest outbreaks is the Otay Fire some five miles south of Dulzura. The National Interagency Fire Center reports major runs with rapidly spreading flames caused by winds. The Otay Fire increased 10,000 acres in just six hours. Tiburski said he lives within 10 miles of the Otay fire. "It's almost like it's snowing over here with all the soot and debris coming down out of the sky," he said. Santa Ana winds have reached velocities of 50 MPH, and at least one fire jumped a major highway.
ARES teams in San Diego County were handling
logistic communications for the Red Cross, which is supplying meals to first
responders as well as to the shelters. RACES teams have been working with
county officials at the emergency operations center (EOC). Among those
evacuated was ARRL San Diego County Section Emergency Coordinator Pat Bunsold,
WA6MHZ, who lives in El Cajon. Tiburski said Bunsold was assisting at a
secondary EOC set up at an Elks Lodge, which is serving as one of the shelters.
Elks Club members have pitched in to assist with meals, Tiburski said.
"This is unbelievable, the amount of destruction," he said. "It's basically touched everybody."
Tiburski said ARES and RACES members--including some who do double duty as Red Cross volunteers--could be involved for several days. He said Amateur Radio operators also may assist in mop-up operations once the fires are under control.
Los Angeles and Orange Sections
In the Los Angeles area, ARRL Los Angeles SM
Phineas Icenbice, W6BF, reports ARES members from his section have been assisting
with fire-related activations in the Orange and San Diego Sections. Los Angeles
SEC Dennis Smith, KA6GSE, says ARES volunteers from the section also are
helping at Red Cross shelters in LA.
 (L-R) Ken Nelson, W6NEL, James Nagel, AB0WM--an ARES Emergency Coordinator-- and Thomas Renny, KC6LQV, at work in the San Bernardino County Fire Department Communications Support Unit 502. [Art Sutorus, KQ6HF, Photo ] |
Icenbice says the Santa Ana winds have made it difficult for some of the "super scoopers" firefighters use to try to douse the flames to fly and pick up water. He called it the worst fire situation he's seen in four decades of living in the Los Angeles area and said the smoke was so thick at times that firefighting aircraft could not get off the ground or navigate.
Orange SM Carl Gardenias, WU6D, said ARES volunteers have been supporting San Bernardino County in supporting emergency communication. ARES in Orange was called out on Saturday and Sunday to supplement communications for 26 Red Cross shelters in the Orange Section, one of them housing 1700 people.
Amateur Radio also is being used at the EOC in San Bernardino, and amateurs there also have been assisting the fire department.
Gardenias said that with some highways still closed, it's difficult to get from one portion of the county to another. Communication is important to locate resources and direct them to the places that need help, he said, and hams have been pulling together to provide it and to assist relief agencies.
He reports the Santa Ana winds were easing
somewhat, and a high-pressure system was on its way, bringing cooler
temperatures to the fire-afflicted Orange Section.
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