ARES Letter for February 21, 2007
The ARES E-Letter February 21, 2007 ================= Rick Palm, K1CE, Editor <http://www.qrz.com/database?callsign=K1CE>, =================================== ARES reports, other related contributions, editorial questions or comments: <k1ce@arrl.net>;;; =================================== + THE VIEW FROM FLAGLER COUNTY It happened while I was away. My wife Joanne, W1GUN, huddled with our cat in an inner closet after she received a midnight call from the county EOC to take immediate cover from an advancing tornado. Luckily, it missed. Others were not as fortunate: storms hit several communities south of us, taking 20 lives, leaving devastation. The ARES response is summarized in the lead article. ====== IN THIS ISSUE: + CENTRAL FLORIDA TORNADO DISASTER + OHIO SNOWSTORM RESPONSE + NOR'EASTER RESPONSE + LANDMARK ARRL EMERGENCY PLANNING REPORT RELEASED; NATIONAL ARES DATA BASE, MAJOR DISASTER EMERGENCY COORDINATOR AMONG RECOMMENDATIONS + ARRL COMMITTEE TO FORMALLY STUDY BACKGROUND CHECKS + EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER POSITION OPEN IN NEWINGTON + LEAGUE ROLLS OUT EMERGENCY RADIO PUBLIC RELATIONS CAMPAIGN, WEB SITE + FIRST RESPONSE COALITION CAMPAIGN FOR NATIONAL DAY OF RECOGNITION + ORANGE COUNTY (CA) HOSPITAL SUPPORT GROUP UPDATE + LETTERS: ON NERPC REPORT + LETTERS: RED CROSS BACKGROUND CHECKS + LETTERS: TRAINING COURSE FOR COMMUNICATIONS UNIT LEADER (ICS) + CORRECTION: PACIFIC NORTHWEST SNOW STORM + LETTERS: MORE ON THE COMMUNICATIONS UNIT LEADER (ICS) + PROFILE: LES RAYBURN, N1LF + TRAINING OPS RESOURCE + K1CE FOR A FINAL ===== + CENTRAL FLORIDA TORNADO DISASTER Tornadoes cut a swath west-to-east just north of the I-4 corridor, a notorious tornado alley in Central Florida, in the middle of the night, February 2. The NWS rated two of the three tornadoes as EF-3 events -- 160-165 MPH winds -- on the new "Enhanced Fujita Scale." See <http://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/ef-scale.html> In a matter of minutes, 20 people lost their lives, with the storms impacting four counties. ARES was active in Lake, Seminole, Sumter and Volusia counties -- all designated as federal disaster areas. Twenty Sumter County ARES operators under the leadership of EC JT Fleming, W3GQJ, provided communications between the county EOC and shelters. Other ARES teams stood by to fill other gaps when needed. ARES op Irv Butler, KB1E, worked in Lake County, providing communications to The Salvation Army meals relief teams. ARES/RACES volunteers from Seminole and Lake counties installed a backup repeater in Paisley to restore radio communication for Lake County Fire and Rescue. The 145.23 MHz repeater was down after the storm toppled the 1500-foot commercial radio tower that had supported the repeater's antenna. The repeater serves the East Central District ARES during disasters, although the organization has trained members to use simplex if and when repeaters fail. East Central District EC Jay Musikar, AF2C, commended the "great team work on the part of Butler, and Dick Fess, K4FUY, EC Seminole County, and three talented ARES members Bob Beach, W8LCZ, Dave Blum, KF4GTJ, and Carl De Poy, K8BBT, who put a Mutual Aid Communications (MAC) Unit in place at the Paisley site along with its 100 foot tower to bring Lake County Fire Rescue back on-line." Musikar cited a "great job of two ARES teams pulling together toward a common goal." By daybreak on Saturday, the Lake County EOC was involved in a search-and-rescue phase, with assets deployed to the hardest hit areas, especially the Paisley and Mack Lake areas. Seminole County saw its share of devastation after an EF-2 (130 - 135 mph winds) tore through it soon after the storm in Lake County. Despite the damage in Seminole, Dick Fess, K4FUY, and his team were able to assist Lake County ARES. Volusia County was not spared either, with an EF-1 tornado damaging New Smyrna Beach. Lake County ARES was later reactivated to support a "Base Camp" operation. They expected to be providing up to four operators for an indefinite period of time. Primary operations were run on the N4FLA 147.00 MHz repeater with a remote base link to other county repeaters as needed. "Base Camp" will coordinate and deploy volunteer clean-up and repair assets as well as water, ice, and food into the impacted Lady Lake and Mack Lake areas. Lake County released a public information memo at: <http://www.lakecountyfl.gov/media/news_releases/news_release.aspx?id=344> -- from local reports, ARRL Letter + OHIO SNOWSTORM RESPONSE February 14 -- In Northern Ohio, Seneca county activated a net to receive snowstorm reports of local weather, road conditions, and stranded motorists by mobile hams. DEC Karl Erbland, K8ARL, oversaw the net, which operated from the Seneca county EOC. The Ohio Single Sideband Net, on 3927.5 kHz, was used to keep counties in Northern Ohio in contact with each other; local VHF and UHF repeaters were also used. In District 3 (Western Ohio), ARES groups in Darke, Green, and Shelby counties assisted local EMA's and hospitals with transportation of essential personnel. Montgomery county ARES was activated by their local EMA and a net was held on the local 145.11 repeater. Before the storm hit, the Ohio SEC sent messages to all District ECs to have their ARES groups ready to be deployed in the event of shelter openings, or requests of served agencies. "I am proud of all the ARES volunteers in Ohio who responded, or were prepared to deploy upon notification," said Frank Piper, KI8GW, Ohio SEC + NOR'EASTER RESPONSE SKYWARN was activated in the northeast for a major Nor'easter blizzard. The storm dumped 1-3 feet of snow across northeast New York, New Hampshire, Vermont, northwest Massachusetts and Maine with whiteout, blizzard conditions, and strong winds. SKYWARN hams and the National Weather Service Forecast Offices in Taunton, Massachusetts (WX1BOX) and Gray, Maine (WX1GYX) received the SKYWARN reports of snowfall, wind damage and flooding. Several repeaters and linked repeater systems across New England were used and the New England Reflector System was active. The system was used for getting SKYWARN reports from across New England and as a pathway for the NWS in Taunton to communicate with their counterpart in Gray, Maine, directly and through NWS liaison Ken Grimmard, N1DOT. "We continue to build a strong SKYWARN program for the NWS Gray Maine office. These reports that we get from spotters are extremely helpful and we had two ham operators Jerry Hume, KB1NHD, and David Lowe, KB1NJP, at the office for much of the afternoon and evening. We currently have EchoLink capability and 2 Meter/440 capability at WX1GYX," said Tom Berman, N1KTA, a forecaster at the NWS Gray Maine office. With no HF capability at NWS Gray yet, the NWS Taunton office was requested by NWS Gray to go to the Seagulls Net on 3940 kHz to get reports of snowfall and weather conditions from the net as it covers much of Maine and New Hampshire. The reports were then delivered to NWS Gray via EchoLink. "Here is an example of how HF and EchoLink/IRLP communications can complement one another," said Rob Macedo, KD1CY, ARES SKYWARN Coordinator for NWS Taunton, Massachusetts, who also filed this report. + LANDMARK EMERGENCY PLANNING REPORT RELEASED; NATIONAL ARES DATA BASE, MAJOR DISASTER EMERGENCY COORDINATOR AMONG RECOMMENDATIONS The much-anticipated report of the League's National Emergency Response Planning Committee appointed by President Harrison a year ago was received by the ARRL Board last month, and is available to the ARES community at: <http://www.arrl.org/announce/reports-2007/january/NERPC-32aa.pdf> The panel of expert amateur and professional emcomm members worked hard over the last year to provide recommendations to the Board that would improve ARRL's national preparedness. Committee Chairman and ARRL First Vice President Kay Craigie, N3KN, noted that "these wide-ranging and sometimes challenging recommendations require responsiveness to rapid political and technological changes." Flagship recommendations include the drafting and population of a National ARES Data Base; the creation of a new "Major Disaster Emergency Coordinator" position for incidents transcending Section boundaries; and the development of course and certification requirements for ARES operators. (Courses would include ARRL's ARECC Level 1, Red Cross combined course in Adult CPR/First Aid Basics, Red Cross Introduction to Disaster Services, FEMA IS-100 (Introduction to Incident Command System), FEMA IS-200 (ICS for Single Resource and Initial Action Incidents) and FEMA IS-700 (National Incident Management System)). The report is 29 pages long and contains in-depth rationales for the recommendations summarized above, as well as a plethora of additional related recommendations and information. Readers are urged to read the report and comment to the editor. Future issues will feature the opinions of ARES members and others as the Headquarters staff and appropriate standing committee members work to implement the committee's recommendations. The report represents the most comprehensive study and slate of action items in the matter of ARRL emergency communications planning and programs in the modern history of the League. [It is not to be missed. - ed.] + ARRL COMMITTEE TO FORMALLY STUDY BACKGROUND CHECKS In another significant ARRL Board action, the organization will study the controversial issue of background checks for Amateur Radio volunteer communicators. Citing the "increasingly-common practice among served agencies of requiring volunteers, including radio amateurs serving the agencies under the auspices of ARRL-sponsored programs, to submit to personal background investigations," and that "some types of background investigations raise valid concerns among the League's volunteers regarding personal privacy and identity theft," the President will appoint a committee to study issues related to background investigations and to recommend a policy on background investigations which addresses the interests of both the League and its volunteers. The Board recognized that the ARRL "must define and safeguard its own organizational interests as well as act in the best interests of individual volunteers serving under ARRL auspices, and should negotiate Memoranda of Understanding with served agencies based on well-reasoned policy on background investigations. Recommendations will be submitted at the 2008 Annual Meeting, with interim reports supplied to the Executive Committee. + EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER POSITION OPEN IN NEWINGTON The ARRL Board of Directors approved the position of Emergency Communications Manager at HQ in Newington, Connecticut. The post will be responsible for relations with served agencies -- including governmental agencies, memoranda of understanding administration, ARRL internal emergency response planning, simulated emergency tests, emergency communications training, the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) database and related activities. Qualifications include: * knowledge of Amateur Radio, including HF, VHF and digital modes related to emergency communications * five years' minimum ARES/RACES experience or equivalent * ARRL Field Organization leadership experience * knowledge of and experience with ICS and NIMS (FEMA 100 and 700 certification highly desirable, 200 and 800 certification recommended) * completion of the Level 1 ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Communications course (EC-001) * superior speaking and writing skills * Emergency communications professional and/or first responder experience is desirable. The Emergency Communications Manager will act as ARRL emergency communications liaison to government agencies, including FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security. This individual also will: * administer memoranda of understanding between ARRL and served agencies, such as the American Red Cross * maintain and encourage relationships with all ARRL served agencies * create and administer ARRL's internal emergency response plan * coordinate Simulated Emergency Tests * assist field personnel with emergency communications and public service events, as required * maintain and update ARRL emergency communications training materials and publications plus ARRL emergency communications and public service Web content * maintain the ARES volunteer database * act as liaison to ARRL emergency communications Field Organization leadership * write/edit occasional material for QST and other ARRL publications * manage other emergency communications and public service-related issues. [In the editor's opinion, the successful candidate should have professional emcomm credentials across a broad range of experience. During my tenure at HQ, I had responsibility for these functions, but the problem was my lack of direct professional emergency communications experience. While I gained a marginal amount of on the job training, I always felt that the functions would ultimately be best served by a professional with governmental emcomm experience as well as a solid Amateur Radio (ARES) field background. Also, a keen understanding of the nuances of working with volunteers is imperative - ed.] + LEAGUE ROLLS OUT EMERGENCY RADIO PUBLIC RELATIONS CAMPAIGN, WEB SITE "Ham Radio . . . Getting the message through for your family and community" is the theme of the League's 2007 public relations campaign. The "Emergency Radio" Web site <http://www.emergency-radio.org/> has debuted. The new Web site is a partner to the "Ham Radio . . . Getting the message through for your family and community" brochure now available. "If an emergency or disaster should happen, the new 'Ham Radio . . . Getting the message through' site has the capability to quickly upload current information, providing PIOs with words and pictures to circulate to the media while the event is still news," ARRL Media Manager Allen Pitts, W1AGP reports. The Web site provides page space for emergency communication and disaster relief organizations to discuss their work. "So far, SKYWARN, MARS, SATERN and RACES have taken advantage of our offer, showing the versatility of ham radio in disasters and emergencies," Pitts says, "and more are expected." A "How to Get Started" tab on the Web site offers step-by-step instructions. + FIRST RESPONSE COALITION CAMPAIGN FOR NATIONAL DAY OF RECOGNITION Every day, firefighters, police officers and emergency medical personnel make sacrifices to save lives, protect property and uphold the law. Despite their countless contributions and selfless acts, there exists no NATIONAL DAY to recognize first responders' dedication and service. Visit the First Response Coalition Web site and sign the petition to make September 22 National First Responder Appreciation Day. In the third week of September, 2001, the full measure of sacrifices made by first responders during 9/11 came to light and thus September 22 was chosen. Supporters can also "Tell a Friend" about National First Responder Appreciation Day by e-mailing the information from the FRC Web site directly to their contact lists. Once the FRC's online petition obtains 25,000 signatures, it will be forwarded to Congress and meetings will be held with key offices to call for a Congressional resolution. First Responders deserve this long-overdue appreciation. If you have any questions about National First Responder Appreciation Day or the FRC <www.firstresponsecoalition.org>, call 202-263-2904 -- Steven Jones, Executive Director, First Response Coalition, 919 18th Street N.W., Suite 950, Washington, D.C. 20006 + ORANGE COUNTY (CA) HOSPITAL SUPPORT GROUP UPDATE The Hospital Disaster Support Communications System (HDSCS) of Orange County, California, is a group of 80 radio amateurs who have volunteered to provide backup internal and external communications for critical medical facilities whenever normal communications are interrupted for any reason. Last year, HDSCS averaged over three events per month. While there were only three emergency callouts during 2006, many drills, standby operations, and special demos at Orange County hospitals were held. One of the standby operations was as serious as any emergency callout when phone work caused the phones to be down longer than expected. During the overnight event, HDSCS communicators handled numerous pharmacy and lab requests along with two Code Blues and communications related to an emergency surgical procedure on a child at 2:30 AM when phones were out in the OR. This was the perfect example of why it is valuable to have hams on site when phone work is being done. Last month, HDSCS held its annual Year End Finale/Year Beginning meeting. This is a special tradition with HDSCS when top members (known as the Disaster Dozen) are recognized, and members take the final exam, while enjoying chocolate. (The chocolate is a 10 lb. Nestle Crunch Bar). The final exam is a test on HDSCS procedures, hospital and EMS terminology and emergency problem solving. Members are put in teams to take the exam. It's a great team building activity. This year's Orientation and Review Workshop at the county EOC will be held March 3. -- April Moell, WA6OPS, ARES Emergency Coordinator, Hospital Disaster Support Communications System <emcom4hosp@aol.com>;, <http://www.hdscs.org/> + LETTERS: ON NERPC REPORT I wanted to take the time to eat a bit of crow, and admit that my skepticism about the work done to date by the NERPC [see above related story on the National Emergency Response Planning Committee report -ed.]. I've reviewed the report in detail, and found it to be very complete in its scope, and I applaud its common sense recommendations. I think that [the members] have done a remarkable job, and I hope that the League moves quickly to implement the recommendations of the committee. One area of concern is the growing number of national organizations seeking to utilize Amateur Radio resources without being formally involved in discussions with the League. Two that come to mind are the new relationship between MARS and the TSA. The other is the SHARES/NCS organization, which also draws most of (though not all of) its members from MARS. The League should move to formalize a partnership between ARES and MARS quickly. Otherwise, I fear that future disasters will find these organizations competing for resources and duplicating efforts. Again, my sincere thanks for the obvious work and thought that went into this report. -- Les Rayburn, N1LF, Helena, Alabama, Official Emergency Station + LETTERS: RED CROSS BACKGROUND CHECKS The American Red Cross policy of requiring background checks for its volunteers is a good one. Such a policy protects, to the extent possible, other volunteers and the communities they serve. Members of communities in peril have often been "easy marks" for all sorts of abuses and, while one can never predict what any person will do, screening out known offenders reduces the likelihood of such problems. This good idea, however, has been implemented in a counter-productive way. Given the method for submitting information, it is obvious that some unknown company is conducting the checks. This is a serious problem. Many of these companies are Internet-based and provide information from one or several databases that often contain massive amounts of inaccurate information, the sources of which are often unknown. There is usually no meaningful way to challenge these inaccuracies. Equally problematic is the fact that none of these databases has complete criminal histories. It is not uncommon for their reports to indicate that a person has no criminal record when, in fact, he does. Many of these companies compile the information provided by the ARC or other submitting entity with the information obtained from other databases and sell it to various marketers and other database companies. Credit history, while still used as a screening tool by most employers and in the law enforcement community, has never proven to be an accurate indicator of trustworthiness. Many Americans are in debt and have had credit problems. That does not make them dishonest. If only those with good credit histories were hired or used as volunteers, there would be a huge void in the workforce and volunteer force. The ARC can avoid these problems by having state police or other law enforcement agencies conduct the criminal background checks. The records of these agencies are far more accurate and any discrepancies or errors can be traced, confirmed or ruled out. I suspect that the cost of law enforcement checks versus the on-line checks may be a factor in the current process; however, ruling out people because of erroneous database information or, worse, allowing a person to serve who in fact has a criminal record that some database company is not privy to, harms both the volunteer community and the citizens it serves. It is unrealistic and unfair to suggest that those who do not subject themselves to the current process have "something to hide"; rather, most have their good names and confidential information to protect - - something they lose control of when they submit this information to some Internet database company. Until the ARC implements a procedure that provides accurate information and protects the privacy of its volunteers, it will continue to needlessly discourage capable and qualified volunteers from providing their services. -- Leon Grauer, N0TAZ, Esq., Newark, New Jersey + LETTERS: TRAINING COURSE FOR COMMUNICATIONS UNIT LEADER (ICS) The last issue noted "a recommendation that DHS/FEMA establish a training course for the "Communications Unit Leader" position, and that it be made a standard part of an Incident Command System (ICS) response." The course already exists as S-358 in the wildland fire arena. NIMS/FEMA is using our stuff, and we are writing updates of the course in an attempt to "de-smoke" it so it applies better to all-risk use. I am one of the "Subject Matter Experts" involved with rewriting the course. We should have it ready to teach a test class this spring and then get it formalized to release for general use. Instructors are to be fully qualified Comm Unit Leaders (COML) with a Communications Coordinator (COMC) being the lead. A lot of our COMLs are also hams. -- Jim Shepherd, N7WVZ, USDA Forest Service COML Member Type II Incident Management Team (Great Basin) + CORRECTION: PACIFIC NORTHWEST SNOW STORM Just a quick correction to the Pacific Northwest storm story in the last newsletter: Bill Bowden, KI7AO, and Kittitas county are in Eastern Washington. So the storm was a state-wide effort on the ARES front. - Mark J. Tharp, KB7HDX, ARRL Section Manager Eastern Washington + PROFILE: LES RAYBURN, N1LF A frequent and respected contributor, Les Rayburn, N1LF, has a professional career developing training materials for the emergency management field, and works closely with various federal agencies directly involved in the response to wide scale disasters. He is an active member of the International Association of Emergency Management (IAEM), Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials - International (APCO), and other organizations related to the field. Part of Rayburn's daily routine is closely tracking advances in emergency management and communications. Currently, he is developing training videos on ICS and NIMS specifics for two federal agencies. Rayburn's background includes prior military service as a submarine radioman, where he held a Top Secret security clearance. Rayburn has passed the ARRL's ARECC Level 1, 2, and 3 courses, as well as NIMS/ICS training courses ICS100, 200, 300, 400, 700/800, and 701. He is First Aid/CPR certified, has completed CERT training and is active in a leadership position on the Helena, Alabama CERT team. Rayburn's personal response vehicle is fully equipped for VHF/UHF/HF communications including Pactor 3 Winlink capabilites. He is an active member of the NCS/SHARES organization (NCS-047) and spent over six weeks involved in various missions for NCS in the aftermath of Katrina/Rita. Rayburn's production company also produced a documentary on that response, called "Postmark: Katrina" which aired on the Weather Channel in 2006. He has been an OES for two years; a SKYWARN member for almost two decades. Having worked directly under the Operations Section leader in several past large scale incidents, Rayburn can "talk the talk" with emergency managers and present a professional appearance for Amateur Radio. He is adept at solving problems on the fly, knowing when to play by the book, and when to throw the book out. + TRAINING REGISTRATION AND DATA BASE RESOURCE A National database for State approved training (FEMA/ICS, etc.) is available at: <https://ks.train.org/DesktopShell.aspx> It is maintained by the Kansas State Department of Health and Welfare and is available in 23 states so far. You can create your own account and update your class attendance, then just have your transcript forwarded from FEMA, or other State approved agency. In Kansas it goes to the KDHE Office and they will validate the class for you. Once you create your account, you can log in to any of the States who have a XX.train.org site and it will list the classes you have taken. The information you list isn't available to the general public. But it is available to the other states involved in the Training Network. This is a free service, maintained by a State agency. It should make verifying you credentials very easy. I am sure there are other organizations that do this, but most charge a membership fee <http://www.nrcev.org/> etc. Link to the Credentialing FAQ: <http://www.fema.gov/txt/emergency/nims/credent_faq.txt> -- Ken Collins, NU0B, Montgomery County, Kansas RACES Officer [I registered for the above database service. According to the acknowledgement received, "There are many benefits to your free TRAIN account, including: - Access to information on hundreds of courses in public health and related fields. - The ability to save your searches for courses in the subjects, formats, or competencies that interest you, with optional e-mail notices of new courses. - An online transcript to keep track of your learning. - Quick online registration for courses that use the TRAIN registration system. - Message and document boards to communicate with other professionals. - 24-hour access to special state and local announcements. - A 5-star review system to help you find the best courses for your needs. It looks pretty good to me. - ed.] + WINLINK 2000 YAHOO GROUP There is a Yahoo Group that is devoted to the topic of Winlink 2K as it specifically applies to EMCOMM. See <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wl2kemcomm/> -- N1LF + K1CE FOR A FINAL: ORLANDO HAMCATION NOTES With the absence of the Miami Tropical Hamboree this month, the sister Orlando Hamcation was packed last weekend. I made it through the throng to attend the Northern Florida Section ARES Meeting, hosted by SM Rudy Hubbard, WA4PUP, and featuring speaker John Fleming, WD4FFX, of the State Department of Emergency Management EOC. It was great to see Fleming, a key supporter of Amateur Radio as an emergency communications asset to the State. He drove all the way from Tallahassee to participate. I was also pleased to see Sherri Brower, W4STB, the Section Manager of Southern Florida. I don't know her very well, but it seems to me she has a perfect personality for the job, full of infectious enthusiasm and dedication to her mission. My bet is that she serves her constituency to our south very well. Hubbard and SEC Joe Bushel, W2DWR, spoke on ARES planning and programs in the Section, and afforded East Central District EC Jay Musikar, AF2C, an opportunity to tout the tornado relief efforts of his team of affected county ECs. It was also nice to put faces to call signs heard on the air, my favorite activity of any hamfest! See you next month. 73, Rick K1CE
