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 Previous: Ham Radio is a Family Affair |  Next: Surfin': Emergency Communications Do's and Don'ts |
 The Charlotte County West RACES team operates from a hurricane shelter in Englewood, Florida. (L-R) Vic Emmelkamp, K4VHX, Bill Stevens, W1AMU, and Frank Maren, W4VV. The Red Cross used a school cafeteria and gymnasium to house and feed 450 people. [Tom Hawes, WA3PRC, Photo] |
NEWINGTON, CT, Aug 20, 2004--At least for the time being, the need for additional Amateur Radio Emergency Service volunteers in the Hurricane Charley relief and recovery effort has stabilized. Communications and Warning Officer John Fleming, WD4FFX, of the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) told ARRL that ham radio volunteers already on duty in the five most severely affected counties are holding their own in maintaining necessary emergency communication. But Fleming advised ARES teams and individual volunteers to remain at the ready, just in case.
"You may get ready to go and pack your bags," he said,
"but please don't go until you are requested." Fleming suggested that ARES
teams, clubs and individuals work through the ARES Section Emergency
Coordinator. In West Central Florida, where the most hard-hit counties of
Charlotte, DeSoto, Polk, Hardee and Highlands are located, the SEC is John
Townsley, AE4GB, of New Port Richey.
 In Punta Gorda, where Hurricane Charley came ashore, KG4JPL installs a dualband antenna on a crank up tower for a portable repeater. [Dave Anderson, KG4YZY, Photo] |
Amateur Radio has proven again this week to be a communications mainstay as conventional telecommunications systems became unreliable or went down altogether after Hurricane Charley hit. Approximately one-quarter million residents remained without power at week's end, according to the FDEM. ARES volunteers, with assistance from some clubs and individual radio amateurs, continue to assist American Red Cross and Salvation Army relief and humanitarian operations. They're also providing or supplementing communication between shelters, kitchens and emergency operation centers.
Radio amateurs also have been handling emergency traffic
and assisting the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in setting up HF
communication to the state EOC in the capital of Tallahassee. ARES volunteers also
provided communication for search-and-rescue teams, handled outgoing
health-and-welfare traffic from storm victims now living in shelters in
stricken communities, provided or supplemented public safety communication and
even took on some dispatching duties. At a command post in the DeSoto County
town of Arcadia, St Lucie County Communication Response Team radio amateurs
established a trunking system that allowed the Arcadia fire and police to use
their own radios and to communicate. The group's emergency communications van
can operate on HF and VHF as well as on CB, Marine and any public service
frequency.
 Biff Craine, K4LAW, of the Tampa Amateur Radio Club has been assisting The Salvation Army's relief effort in Charlotte County. The Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network (SATERN) on 14.265 MHz has been handling health-and-welfare traffic via ham radio and its Web site. [Jon Adair, AI4DG, Photo] |
Amateur Radio volunteers also deployed to hospitals, some of which have experienced spotty communication. Several still-operational VHF and UHF repeaters have been buzzing this week with emergency traffic.
The FDEM says Hurricane Charley caused two dozen deaths and nearly 4000 injuries. Other reports indicate that as many as 10,000 homes were badly damaged or destroyed. A presidential disaster declaration covers 25 counties, 13 of them especially hard hit. The most severely stricken communities are in largely rural areas of western and central Florida made up of smaller towns.
ARES teams, club members and individual volunteers from
Florida Miami-Dade, Martin, St Lucie, Broward, Okeechobee and Palm Beach
counties been among those volunteering to help in any way they can.
 Andy Leeds, N3MCB, president of the Platinum Coast Amateur Radio Society in Brevard County was among those responding to assist at a Red Cross shelter and the National Weather Service office. Several other PCARS amateurs also helped. |
In Sarasota County, Ron Wetjen, WD4AHZ, has been working at the county EOC and assigning volunteers to assist in neighboring Charlotte County, where West Central Florida Section Manager Dave Armbrust, AE4MR, has been holding down the fort since the storm struck.
"We've had offers of help from guys in Montana, Ohio, and New York!" Wetjen said this week. "We have a couple from Tennessee here now, with two more on the way for the weekend." Wetjen agreed that the need for additional ARES volunteers was starting to level off as the effort shifts into the recovery phase.
The Salvation Army took advantage of automatic position reporting
system (APRS) technology on ham radio to
keep track of its mobile canteens. The Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio
Network (SATERN) on 14.265 MHz has been
handling health-and-welfare inquiries via ham radio and on its Web site.
| Previous: Ham Radio is a Family Affair | Next: Surfin': Emergency Communications Do's and Don'ts |
