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Subj: ARES E-Letter September 17, 2014
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From: CX2SA@CX2SA.SAL.URY.SOAM
To : ARES@WW
The ARES E-Letter September 17, 2014
Editor: Rick Palm, K1CE
In This Issue:
News In Brief:
Colorado ARES Group Recognized By FEMA
Florida's SARnet Helps DOT with Tech Challenge: A Win-Win
The "Micro" SET: For You, Your Family and Neighborhood
Videos: The Interoperability Continuum
Earthquake Safety and Preparedness Tips
Products for ARES: The Buddistick Antenna
Letters: Central Gulf Coast Hurricane Net
Colorado ARES Provides Input on Communications Unit for State DHSEM
Mexican Amateurs Support Winlink for Disaster Response Communications
K1CE For a Final
News In Brief:
--------------
09/10/14 -- ARES/RACES Volunteers Mobilize in Wake of Nevada Flash Flooding.
ARES/RACES members in Clark County, Nevada, activated Monday, September 8,
after heavy rains sparked flash flooding. They deployed after being called
up by local emergency managers to support communication during recovery
efforts in the Moapa Valley northeast of Las Vegas. At least two people died
as a result of the flooding.
09/09/2014 -- Keynote Convention Speech of FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate,
KK4INZ, Available on YouTube
9/2/14 -- MARS Leaders Mull Adopting New Training Approach, Upping
Recruitment Game
8/29/14 -- The 2014 Global Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Conference
(GAREC 2014) held August 14-15 in Huntsville, Alabama, and hosted by the
ARRL Alabama Section and the Huntsville Hamfest, offered an opportunity for
participants to share presentations and perspectives from around the globe.
Greg Sarratt, W4OZK, organized this year's GAREC event, which focused on the
application of advanced technologies in disaster response and emergency
communication. Full story here.
Colorado ARES Group Recognized By FEMA
--------------------------------------
FEMA recently announced its nationwide Citizen Corps awards with Boulder
County ARES (BCARES) in Colorado winning Honorable Mention under the
Technical Achievements category for their use of ATV and APRS, and for their
MERN Project during the Boulder floods last year. The Mountain Emergency
Radio Network (MERN) was created in conjunction with BCARES, Inter-Mountain
Alliance (IMA), and Boulder County Office of Emergency Management. The
mission: To facilitate community emergency preparedness and insure
uninterrupted communication between and within six mountain communities in
Western Boulder County, county emergency services, and their resources prior
to and during an emergency event via an Amateur Radio network. FEMA is
planning an award presentation. See the awards information link here. --
Jack Ciaccia, WMG, ARRL Colorado Section Manager
Florida's SARnet Helps DOT with Tech Challenge: A Win-Win
---------------------------------------------------------
From an Amateur Radio user's perspective, the Statewide Amateur Radio
network (SARnet) is simply a network of independently operated, amateur,
UHF, voice-radio repeaters in Florida that are linked together. In truth
though, it is much more than that. SARnet is a story of the Amateur Radio
community coming together to help a state government agency overcome a
technological challenge. The state agency in question is the Florida
Department of Transportation (FDOT).
The FDOT is an agency charged with maintaining roadways in the state of
Florida, keeping them safe for the traveling public. To meet its charge, the
FDOT deploys personnel that work along these roadways. To communicate, these
workers use VHF low-band analog voice radios that operate in the mid 40 MHz
range, just below the amateur 6 meter band. The agency operates thousands of
radios through dozens of repeater sites all over the state, 24 hours a day,
365 days a year. The repeaters are networked together in regional districts
on a statewide Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) microwave and fiber
network. In an effort to continue to keep this workforce safe, while at the
same time improving resource utilization and situational awareness for both
crews and management, the FDOT has been working to provide interoperability
between the regions of this voice radio network, the capital in Tallahassee,
and other public safety agencies. This sort of improvement requires
technology and any new technology needs testing before it can be deployed.
This is where the Amateur Radio community comes in.
Recently, the FDOT needed to begin investigating connecting their VHF
repeaters together using a relatively new Internet Protocol (IP) technology
called multicast. This powerful technology makes it possible for multiple
radio sites to be connected together while using only the network bandwidth
of one conversation. Traditional voice over IP network implementations put
one copy of the conversation on the network for each radio site, using more
and more bandwidth with each site that is added. The problem with starting
this investigation of multicast was that the FDOT voice radio network is a
live network. Testing a new complex technology on a live network would be,
at best, frustrating for the work crews on the roadways, and at worst,
downright dangerous since it would likely result in radio system outages.
Fortunately, many of the principal FDOT personnel responsible for operating
the statewide ITS microwave network and supporting the FDOT VHF voice radio
network are also Amateur Radio operators. They decided to enlist a few
Amateur Radio repeater trustees to let them network their repeaters together
over the FDOT statewide ITS microwave network. The idea was that the FDOT
could create an ongoing test bed for this new multicast network technology
using live Amateur Radio traffic, and in return the amateur community would
get a new exciting resource to use for communicating long distances in and
around the state of Florida.
The win-win has so far been a great success. In fact, the test bed created
by the SARnet has provided numerous insights for the FDOT into how to test,
operate, maintain, troubleshoot, and upgrade an advanced technology like
multicast when it is being used on such a large scale. There have been
several challenging issues that the FDOT, working side by side with the
radio amateurs, have been able to solve. Most recently, a new repeater was
linked to SARnet in Madison, Florida. Initial reports, and even recordings,
from local hams indicated that the SARnet traffic was cutting in and out,
with short audio blanking segments. The evidence provided by the amateurs
suggested a network issue was to blame and indeed upon investigation the
problem turned out to be an intermittent microwave network card that had not
been detected previously while running typical IP traffic through the network.
For the amateurs who use SARnet, the experience is proving to be a lot of
fun, but it has also become more than that. The potential for SARnet to
support public event, disaster response and emergency communications is
impressive. Consider that SARnet rides on a statewide network of hardened
microwave tower and fiber sites and NOT the Internet. All of these sites
have battery systems and automatic generators with extended fuel supplies
that can run for many days, if not weeks. Consider also that the bandwidth
used by SARnet on this network is dedicated. That means when the Internet
begins to experience outages during a severe weather event here in Florida
and most Internet-based amateur repeater linking protocols, such as
Echolink, Allstar, D-Star, and WIRES, are having difficulty maintaining
connections, SARnet will still be fully operational.
The amateur disaster response community has already embraced SARnet. The
Duval County, Florida EOC conducts a weekly check-in net on SARnet on
Fridays at 9AM, where late check-ins are welcome. In addition, the National
Hurricane Center has expressed an interest in using SARnet from their
location on the Florida International University Campus in Miami.
Users on SARnet Need No Special Equipment
Returning to the Amateur Radio user's perspective, it turns out working with
SARnet is really easy. If you have a nearby UHF repeater that is connected
to SARnet then when you access it, like you would do any normal day, you
bring up that repeater, but you also bring up all of the other SARnet UHF
repeaters simultaneously around the state. There is nothing different,
equipment-wise or even frequency-wise, that you as a user of your local
repeater need to do to access SARnet. It does help to say where you are
though during a contact so other hams on SARnet will know if you are local
or not.
The planning behind SARnet is largely complete and the construction is
underway. Twelve SARnet repeaters are connected as of early September with
another 4-6 planning to be connected before the end of the year. Ultimately
the network will likely consist of approximately 25-30 repeaters, covering
most of coastal regions and some interior areas along interstates. The size
of the network was chosen by FDOT as being representative of how they will
deploy the technology on their own voice radio network. If you are
interested in the technical details behind how the repeaters are connected
on SARnet you will find them on the SARnet website, along with frequencies,
approximate repeater locations, and a rough coverage map. The website is
www.sarnetfl.com.
It is important to note that the FDOT views the SARnet as an ongoing
test-bed that will continue to be maintained for the foreseeable future.
This network of local repeaters is providing an incredible resource to the
state, allowing the FDOT to test technology without jeopardizing their own
live radio network, and at the same time conducting those tests with very
little cost and time involved. As the FDOT continues to investigate
multicast and other new technologies that help it support its communication
responsibilities in the state of Florida, it is hoped the Amateur Radio
community will continue to offer its repeaters for use with SARnet in return
for the opportunity to advance the art of radio just a little bit and enjoy
some technological advantages along the way. -- Brian Kopp, PH.D., KC5LPA,
Jacksonville, Florida; University of North Florida Electrical Engineering
The "Micro" SET: For You, Your Family and Neighborhood
------------------------------------------------------
The national ARRL Simulated Emergency Test (SET) is slated for the weekend
of October 4, although the window for operation is September 1 through
November 30 each year, with groups conducting their events over the course
of 48 hours. We are in that window now. The SET is a nationwide exercise in
disaster response and emergency communications administered by ARRL
Emergency Coordinators and Net Managers. ARES, other related groups and the
National Traffic System (NTS) are involved. The SET gives communicators the
opportunity to focus on their capability, strengths and weaknesses within
their community while interacting with NTS nets. It also provides a public
demonstration -- to served agencies such as Red Cross, Emergency Management
and through the news media -- of the value to the public that Amateur Radio
provides. The SET helps radio amateurs gain experience in communications
using standard procedures and a variety of modes under simulated disaster
response conditions.
Add a "Micro SET" to your Activity
Many ARES groups across the country will be participating, and all ARES
members should support the national SET and their local ARES group's
activity, but as an adjunct, you as an individual operator may want to
consider also conducting a more micro, local approach by conducting your own
SET for your home station and neighborhood. Develop an appropriate scenario
based on the existing risks for your area: a wildfire, tornado, earthquake,
or hurricane, perhaps. Recruit a few friends and neighbors down the street
to participate as assistants and "victims." And then play it out: simulate
the onset of disaster conditions, put into effect your family's personal
incident action plan, ensure their safety and the stability of your
immediate home and environment, and then assess the needs of your neighbors.
Establish communications with other hams in your immediate area via simplex,
and then expand your coverage and capability to a local repeater and an HF
outlet - a county or other regional ARES or NTS net - along with a channel
to emergency support functions needed, based on your scenario parameters.
Adapt the SET scoring guidelines and forms (available on the ARRL website)
for your personal effort. Report your results to your local Amateur Radio
organizations: clubs, ARES groups, auxiliary communications groups, etc. Use
your imagination and make it fun, while preserving the gravity of what you
are actually doing: preparing yourself, your family, and your neighbors for
the serious business of survival and the mitigation of the aftereffects of
disasters. - K1CE
Alabama ARES Growing
The 2013 SET Results were published in the July 2014 issue of QST. Alabama
placed first in the SET ARES Activity Score and Georgia took second place.
In the NET Activity Score, Georgia took first place and Alabama took second
place. Mike Watkins, WX4AL, Alabama Section Emergency Coordinator offered a
"job well done" to all Alabama ARES members who participated in the 2013 SET.
Alabama ARES is growing, reports Watkins: "In the 2012 SET, only 18 counties
participated. In the 2013 SET, 21 counties participated." Alabama ARES
continues to develop its SET strategies and exercise design to maximize the
points that local groups can achieve by carefully examining the points
structure of SET. By designing a SET scenario that addresses and maximizes
good results in every point category in a straightforward uncomplicated
exercise, local groups both big and small will achieve two goals: A good
score and a strengthening of the relationship between Alabama ARES and its
partner agencies.
Watkins said in last year's SET, "we saw the trend of multi-county
cooperation that started in 2012 continuing to expand. In the 2013 SET, we
observed four multi-county groups cooperating to perform a SET." Watkins
strongly encourages small groups in any area to team up with other small
groups in neighboring counties to perform a SET. "Such cooperative efforts
will lead to teambuilding, cooperative good will, and an even higher SET
score, all positive incentives for multi-county ARES partnerships," Watkins
said. He hopes to get more counties active this year. "My goal is to see 27
counties performing SET, making good use of the Section Traffic Net, D-Star
Net, WINLINK 2000, and digital modes." -- forums.alabama-ares.org/
Videos: The Interoperability Continuum
--------------------------------------
The video www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVZlK6M8WQ is a presentation that
describes "The Interoperability Continuum," a plan to improve communications
by following "a path to achieving optimum interoperability by broadening
relationships." "Knowing who the players are around you" is mission critical
and to quote from the video: "The reality is, the most important ingredient
in interoperability is relationships." "Relationships count and mean
something." Cherokee County (Georgia) ARES member Randy Kerr, KD4KHO, is
featured in the video. Examples of communications during 9/11, Hurricane
Katrina, floods, and forest fires are discussed. Communications issues and
what the Incident Action plan does to improve and overcome issues before a
disaster happens is presented.
This video, while describing Public Safety planning, is also a model for
ARES. We should be a fluid organization that embraces our neighboring radio
amateurs, repeater owners, ARES members, CERT members, EMA Directors, and so
on, and build strong professional quality relationships. We have similar
paths as described in the video such as training and exercises through
weekly/monthly nets and meetings. We work to determine strengths and
weaknesses, which is exactly what the upcoming ARRL Simulated Emergency Test
(SET) is all about. Check out the video! -- Jim Millsap, WB4NWS,
http://www.cherokee-ares.org/ [Millsap is District Emergency Coordinator
(DEC) for Metro Atlanta, Georgia ARES. The Metro Atlanta ARES District
consists of 14 Counties supported by 13 Emergency Coordinators. - ed.]
Earthquake Safety and Preparedness Tips
---------------------------------------
The events of last month surrounding the south Napa, California earthquake,
a Richter scale 6.0 temblor, remind all of us, especially those on major
fault lines of the country to be prepared to respond to them. FEMA reminds
us to expect aftershocks. These secondary shockwaves are usually less
violent than the main quake but can be strong enough to do additional damage
to weakened structures and can occur in the first hours, days, weeks or even
months after the quake.
During an earthquake, drop, cover and hold on. Minimize movements to a few
steps to a nearby safe place. If indoors, stay there until the shaking has
stopped and exiting is safe. If it is safe to do so, check on neighbors who
may require assistance. Use the telephone only for emergency calls. Cellular
and land line phone systems may not be functioning properly. The use of text
messages to contact family is the best option, when it is available. Amateur
Radio and CERT communications offer viable alternative public notification
and messaging systems.
Check for gas leaks. If you know how to turn the gas off, do so and report
the leak to your local fire department and gas company.
Products for ARES: The Buddistick Antenna
-----------------------------------------
The ARRL Centennial Convention in Hartford, Connecticut, in July, was one of
the finest and most memorable conventions I've ever visited. I saw many old
friends there, one of whom was Dale Clift, NA1L, a former ARRL Headquarters
colleague when we worked there together in the early eighties. He had become
a QRP CW enthusiast, and I became fascinated with his stories of portable
QRP mini-expeditions around New England with an antenna he highly
recommended: the Buddipole system. It happened that the manufacturer had a
booth at the show, and Dale and I spent an hour with their competent reps.
Their knowledge, Dale's good experience with the antenna, and my
ever-present quest for quality Amateur Radio products for my own station,
all conspired to cause me to open my wallet for a simpler antenna by the
same company called a Buddistick?. It's a portable, vertical antenna for
40 meters through 10 meters, for use with any transmitter up to 250 watts.
The engineering is superb, and the quality of the components is top shelf.
It is evident that the product was a labor of love by this company.
The reason I am including this in this newsletter, is that the antenna fills
many of the needs of the disaster response or public service event
communicator for an effective and efficient HF antenna system that is small
and portable, strong and sturdy, and quickly assembled and disassembled.
The Buddistick is packaged in a compartmentalized 1000 denier cordura
portfolio bag and includes 2 aluminum arms (blue or black), one standard
telescopic whip, one adjustable coil, 2 coil clips, mounting kit, a complete
counterpoise system, as well as a good operating manual. Included is one 31'
radial on a line winder for use on all bands 40 meters through ten meters. I
mounted the mounting plate to a railing on my deck with the rubberized
clamping knob. On the aluminum plate is an SO-239 connector for a coax feed
(I used a 25 foot run of RG-8X); and the mounting adaptor for the arms, coil
and telescoping whip. I was able to assemble and mount the antenna to my
railing in under three minutes. I ran out the entire length of the 31 feet
of radial wire, keeping it elevated off the ground, and attaching the end
(on the winder) to a fence post. My radio is an ICOM IC-7000, with about a
100 watts output, and a low SWR. I think it's a good idea to have a small
antenna tuner in line, and I run the LDG IT-100 auto tuner and Bird 43
wattmeter.
You can tune the antenna by ear: I simply connect the coax to my radio, set
the Buddistick so I can reach the coil from my radio, turn the VFO to the
frequency I want. Swipe the mini-banana plug that is attached to the bottom
of the coil in an up and down motion. I listen for max signal and/or noise,
and then place a tap in that position. I check the SWR to see if it's okay,
I adjust the radial for resonance, and my antenna tuner to get the SWR down
even further. My friend Dale uses an antenna analyzer with his Buddipole
system.
My initial CW contact was with another friend, Eliot, W1MJ, in Boston,
Massachusetts (I'm in northern Florida) on 40-meters. He runs an Elecraft K3
transceiver and a dipole fed by twin lead to his small backyard. Running
only 5 watts, he was an S3 at my station. I was running 100 watts and was
given a 579 report from Boston. I was very happy with the antenna's
performance for such a small, shortened vertical antenna. It just seems an
ideal option for a public event or disaster response operator in the field.
Information on the Buddipole (a dipole system) and Buddistick products can
be found at their website: www.buddipole.com - K1CE
Letters: Central Gulf Coast Hurricane Net
-----------------------------------------
A few additions to the history of Amateur Radio disaster response and
emergency communications as presented in the last issue: The Central Gulf
Coast Hurricane Net was active in providing disaster response communications
during hurricanes Betsy and Hilda in the mid 1960's. The net met for years,
initially as an AM net on 3845 kHz, and then moved to 3935 kHz. During the
hurricane Camille event, communications with the Mississippi Gulf coast was
maintained all night. The city of Waveland, Mississippi, was looking for
firefighting equipment for a large fire, but none could be sent until the
winds subsided.
There is also a not so well known organization, mostly of ham operators,
that is on the front line of disaster response communications: Disaster
Services Technology is the field IT division of Red Cross and handles a lot
of their communications needs. I find most hams don't even know DST exists.
- Steve Irving, WA5FKF, Baton Rouge, Louisiana [I found this video on the
Red Cross website that discusses the DST, narrated by a radio amateur from a
disaster site in Minot, North Dakota. It's worth a look. Click here. - ed.]
Colorado ARES Provides Input on Communications Unit for State DHSEM
-------------------------------------------------------------------
August 3, 2014 - Colorado SEC Robert Wareham, N0ESQ, has sent the Colorado
Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (DHSEM ) of the
Department of Public Safety a draft measure that would create the Auxiliary
Communications Unit of the Office of Emergency Management. The proposed
language would provide ARES members with benefits and protections statewide
not only when deployed to disasters, but also when exercising, participating
in drills, or attending classes in preparation for response to disasters.
Wareham reports that several legislators have expressed a willingness to
co-sponsor the bill. Wareham will keep ARES members informed of the progress
of the measure so that members can contact their local representatives and
senators to support the bill. Wareham also hopes to have a draft bill to
codify PRB-1 in Colorado, as well as provide further enhancements to the
expansion of Amateur Radio in Colorado, ready in time for the next
legislative session. - Colorado ARES
Mexican Amateurs Support Winlink for Disaster Response Communications
---------------------------------------------------------------------
A three year program to fund Winlink gateways in Mexico was completed
recently with the installation of XE1CRG. Mexico is a diverse country where
HF communications plays a role in disaster recoveries and during
emergencies. While Mexico's infrastructure is complete and modern, there are
areas where Internet connectivity does not exist. And so Mexican amateurs
who provide support to local Protection Civil offices and other agencies
have had a history of using HF voice.
We conducted a demonstration for officials in 2011 of various HF data modes.
Victor Pinilla, XE1VP, from the University of Mexico was impressed with the
portable Winlink HF station and easy delivery to Internet-based email
recipients. This started a planning and funding process to install four
complete Winlink gateways. To date, four systems at a cost of $20,000 have
been established at reliable sites with local area support.
Each system is configured with an ICOM 7200 and SCS Dragon Pactor modem. The
sites are secure with local battery back-up. All gateways run Pactor and
WINMOR 1600. The sites also have packet radio ports for training and local
use.
Since Mexico is allowed auto-forwarding and Pactor 4 operation, all the
gateways participate in the Winlink Hybrid Network, offering radio-only
message transport in the event of Internet failure, and MPS (Message Pickup
Station) delivery. One site near the Guatemalan border, XE2EOS, loses
Internet connectivity from time-to-time but with HF auto-forwarding, email
continues to reliably flow.
This commitment by Mexico's amateur community is also supported by the
Federacion Mexicana de Radio Experimentadores (FMRE, Mexico's IARU
member-society). Technical and financial support has come from many local
amateurs: XE2SI XE2GF XE1RZ XE2EOS XE1BRX.Winlink has proven reliable and
robust for the remote email and peer messaging needs in Mexico. These
systems are open to the worldwide amateur community and are actively
exercised by US amateurs and many foreign visiting boaters and voyagers on
the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The comfort level for officials for
emergencies provided by these gateways is a testament to the dedication and
hard work of many, to include the Winlink Development Team. -- Mike Burton,
XE2/N6KZB, reprinted from the Winlink website www.winlink.org with permission
K1CE For a Final
----------------
In last month's issue, in the lead article on a brief history of ARES, I
recalled my experience in the fifties as a child with a crystal radio set
and Burgess batteries. I wrote "Hams worked with the Burgess Battery Company
for emergency radio power. Many of us old-timers including myself have used
those batteries when we were kids for our crystal radio kits; they looked
like tall, thick candle columns!" That was 50 years ago, and while my Dad
had set up a crystal radio for me, it did not use battery power. He also had
set up an array of electric bells, motors and lights connected to those
Burgess batteries on my bedroom table to teach me the principles of
electricity -- and for fun, too. Sorry for the technical error.
_________
Lastly, I'd like to call readers' attention to the audio version of the ARES
E-Letter, voiced by Tony Riggs, W1FHN; audio script written by Al Brown,
KZ3AB. Tony and Al perform an outstanding job and I tip my hat in thanks to
them. Check out the audio version here:
http://www.arrl.org/ares-e-letter-audio-version
73, Rick Palm, K1CE, Editor, Daytona Beach, Florida
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