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In times of crisis and
natural disasters,
amateur radio is often used as a means of emergency communication when
wireline,
cell phones
A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whi ...
and other conventional means of communications fail.
Unlike commercial systems, amateur radio is usually independent of terrestrial facilities that can fail. It is dispersed throughout a community without "choke points" such as cellular telephone sites that can be overloaded.
Amateur radio operators are experienced in improvising antennas and power sources and most equipment today can be powered by an automobile battery. Annual "
Field Days" are held in many countries to practice these emergency improvisational skills. Amateur radio operators can use hundreds of frequencies and can quickly establish networks tying disparate agencies together to enhance
interoperability
Interoperability is a characteristic of a product or system to work with other products or systems. While the term was initially defined for information technology or systems engineering services to allow for information exchange, a broader defi ...
.
Recent examples include the
September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...
on the
World Trade Center
World Trade Centers are sites recognized by the World Trade Centers Association.
World Trade Center may refer to:
Buildings
* List of World Trade Centers
* World Trade Center (2001–present), a building complex that includes five skyscrapers, a ...
in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
in 2001, the
2003 North America blackout
The Northeast blackout of 2003 was a widespread power outage throughout parts of the Northeastern and Midwestern United States, and most parts of the Canadian province of Ontario on Thursday, August 14, 2003, beginning just after 4:10 p.m. ...
and
Hurricane Katrina in September 2005, where amateur radio was used to coordinate disaster relief activities when other systems failed. In 2017, the
Red Cross
The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, and ...
requested 50 amateur radio operators be dispatched to
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...
to provide communications services in the wake of
Hurricane Maria
Hurricane Maria was a deadly Category 5 hurricane that devastated the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly Dominica, Saint Croix, and Puerto Rico. It is regarded as the worst natural disaster in recorded history to affect ...
.
On September 2, 2004, ham radio was used to inform weather forecasters with information on
Hurricane Frances
Hurricane Frances was the second most intense tropical cyclone in the Atlantic during 2004 and proved to be very destructive in Florida. It was the sixth named storm, the fourth hurricane, and the third major hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic hur ...
live from the
Bahama
The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the arch ...
s. On December 26, 2004,
an earthquake and resulting tsunami across the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...
wiped out all communications with the
Andaman Islands, except for a
DX-pedition
A DX-pedition is an expedition to what is considered an exotic place by amateur radio operators and DX listeners, typically because of its remoteness, access restrictions, or simply because there are very few radio amateurs active from that pl ...
that provided a means to coordinate relief efforts.
Recently, amateur radio operators in the
People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
provided emergency communications after the
2008 Sichuan earthquake and U.S. hams did similar work following
Hurricane Ike.
Amateur radio operators provided communications in the aftermath of the
Boston Marathon bombing
The Boston Marathon bombing was a domestic terrorist attack that took place during the annual Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013. Two terrorists, brothers Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev, planted two homemade pressure cooker bombs, w ...
when cellphone systems became overloaded.
The largest disaster response by U.S. amateur radio operators was during
Hurricane Katrina which first made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane went through Miami, Florida on August 25, 2005, eventually strengthening to Category 5. More than a thousand ham operators from all over the U.S. converged on the Gulf Coast in an effort to provide emergency communications assistance. Subsequent Congressional hearings highlighted the Amateur Radio response as one of the few examples of what went right in the disaster relief effort.
Organization
While all hams have some emergency communications capability, those who are particularly interested in the public service aspects of the hobby usually affiliate with an organized group for disaster specific training, quick mobilization and to practice emergency skills. These major organizations include:
International
The
Global Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Conference
The Global Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Conference or GAREC is a yearly conference held by the International Amateur Radio Union for discussion of amateur radio operation during natural disasters and other emergencies with the motto, "S ...
(GAREC) is held in a new location yearly by the
International Amateur Radio Union
The International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) is an international confederation of national organisations that allows a forum for common matters of concern to amateur radio operators worldwide, and collectively represents matters to the Internatio ...
(IARU), hosting discussion and coordination of large-scale and cross-border amateur radio emergency response.
Australia
In Australia, the Wireless Institute Civil Emergency Network
WICEN operates in each state & territory as an autonomous body under the relevant disaster plan.
Austria
In Austria, Amateur Radio Emergency Network Austria
ARENA - The Amateur Radio Emergency Network Austria is a national voluntary service that is provided to the community by licensed radio amateurs. ARENA is part of the OEVSV and IARU - the national and international amateur radio associations. Our focus is to support the public in the event of crises when conventional communication systems fail. Many of our members are volunteers in organizations such as the Austrian Red Cross, Civil Defense, fire brigades, military and related institutions. Unique EmComm support is provided by use of the HF, VHF and UHF frequency spectrums and many operating modes for voice and data communications. Besides usual point-to-point communications, we rely on repeaters, international networks such as Winlink, Echolink, APRS and HAMNET. For instance, one of the 5 mirror-redundant Winlink common message servers is located in Vienna. To increase the skill level of our members in being first responders, exercise and training is done regularly, and ongoing contact with government and non- government organizations is also maintained.
Canada
In Canada,
Amateur Radio Emergency Service
In the United States and Canada, the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) is a corps of trained amateur radio operator volunteers organized to assist in public service and emergency communications. It is organized and sponsored by the Amer ...
(ARES) is sponsored by the
Radio Amateurs of Canada
Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC), known in French as Radio Amateurs du Canada, is the national association for Amateur Radio in Canada. It is a not-for-profit membership association with headquarters in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, representing the i ...
. Often other less formal networks of volunteer radio operators are also used and organized by the local emergency response agencies in conjunction with local ham radio operators.
As in the United States, Radio Amateurs of Canada has memoranda of understanding with numerous agencies expected to receive services
including the Canadian Red Cross and Salvation Army.
Chile
In Chile,
Servicio de Emergencia de Radioaficionados (CE3SER) is sponsored by
Radio Club de Chile (CE3AA) and associated clubs around the country, and maintain active Agreements of Cooperation with the National Emergency Office (ONEMI), Air Force, Army, and the Navy branch in charge of the maritime territory.
It operates daily the national emergency network (Red Chilena NorAustral de Servicios, RECNA) in HF, and locally in VHF-UHF. These exercises are performed on 80, 40, 20, 15 meters, as also locally in the main cities on VHF and UHF. The nets are open to all Chilean amateurs, whether or not members of RCCH, and also to international amateurs.
Radio amateurs' involvement and cooperation in earthquakes and other national emergencies has been publicly acknowledged and thanked by the President of the Republic, several times during the last years Radio Club de Chile has cooperated with other countries' amateurs—notably those of
Nicaragua
Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the countr ...
—in the organization and operation of emergency communications via ham radio.
At the beginning of July 2018, CE3SER, The former Station of Servicio de Emergencias de Radioaficionados begun doing its exercises in the BrandMeister digital network also. They operate in the TG 730911 with this novel initiative in DMR digital communications.
Croatia
In Croatia, SRVKS or RCSS – Radio Communication Systems in Crisis Situation
www.srvks.hr it is an independent association that brings together citizens, and especially licensed radio amateurs who pursue personal and common interests and public needs in the protection and rescue system.
Ireland
In the Republic of Ireland, the Amateur Radio Emergency Network
AREN, co-ordinates emergency communications activities on behalf of the
Irish Radio Transmitters Society (IRTS). AREN membership is, however, open to all amateur radio operators, whether members of IRTS or not.
Malaysia
In Malaysia, the Malaysian Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (MyRACES) a sub division under registered organization MALAYSIAN AMATEUR RADIO TRANSMITTERS' SOCIETY (MARTS) is a Member of International Amateur Radio Union (IARU). MyRACES provide voluntary emergency communications during disaster.
Netherlands
The Dutch Amateur Radio Emergency Service (DARES) was founded in 2003 as a result of the World Radio Conference 2003, where it was decided that licensed Dutch radio amateurs were allowed to offer their services to third parties when there is an emergency. DARES is recognized by the State Department of The Netherlands and supported by the two largest national radio amateur organisations: VERON and VRZA.
DARES consists of a group of radio amateurs and shortwave listeners who offer their knowledge and radio equipment during a disaster or major incident. The organisation is built upon the 25 safety regions defined by Dutch authorities.
DARES has been represented at the
Global Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Conference
The Global Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Conference or GAREC is a yearly conference held by the International Amateur Radio Union for discussion of amateur radio operation during natural disasters and other emergencies with the motto, "S ...
(GAREC) since 2005.
New Zealand
In New Zealand the
New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters
The New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters (NZART) is a non-profit organisation of amateur radio enthusiasts in New Zealand. It represents New Zealand amateur radio operators nationally and internationally. NZART is a founding member ...
provides the AREC - Amateur Radio Emergency Communications (formerly Amateur Radio Emergency Corps) in the role. They won the New Zealand National Search and Rescue award in 2001 for their long commitment to Search and Rescue in NZ.
Spain
In Spain, REMER (Red Radio de Emergencia, Emergency Radio Network) is a national HF/VHF network formed by volunteer ham radio operators, and it is co-ordinated by the local Civil defense groups, which are dependent from the local government authority. It was founded on 1982.
Russia
The volunteer organization called RAS formed in 1988, and at the end of 2012, the Union of Russian Radio amateurs established a committee dedicated to emergency communications and even entered into an agreement with MChS, Emergency Situations Ministry.
Trinidad and Tobago
In Trinidad and Tobago, The Trinidad and Tobago Amateur Radio Society (T.T.A.R.S), the officially recognized body for amateur radio in Trinidad and Tobago, manages the emergency communications arm of the group often referred to as EmComms. EmComms have, in the past, not only been active in Trinidad and Tobago, but throughout the Caribbean. The Office of Disaster Preparedness Management (ODPM) is actively involved in amateur radio and maintains an active amateur radio station and five repeaters.
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom
Radio Amateurs Emergency Network (RAYNET) provides the organizational backbone of their amateur radio emergency communications groups along with the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB). It was formed in 1953 in the aftermath of the
North Sea flood of that year.
United States
In the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, there are two major methods of organizing amateur radio emergency communications: the
Amateur Radio Emergency Service
In the United States and Canada, the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) is a corps of trained amateur radio operator volunteers organized to assist in public service and emergency communications. It is organized and sponsored by the Amer ...
(ARES), an organization of amateur operators sponsored by the
American Radio Relay League
The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) is the largest membership association of amateur radio enthusiasts in the United States. ARRL is a non-profit organization, and was co-founded on April 6, 1914, by Hiram Percy Maxim and Clarence D. Tuska o ...
(ARRL); and the
Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service
The Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES) is an emergency radio service authorized in Part 97.407 of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules and regulations governing amateur radio in the United States.[Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdicti ...]
. Operations under the RACES rules requires preregistration with a local civil defense organization, to allow continued operation under Part 97.407 of the FCC regulations in the event the Amateur Radio Service is ever shut down by presidential order. Thus ARES and RACES involvement within the same area are usually intertwined, with many governments requiring membership and service in that locale's ARES organization to allow operations within the Amateur Radio Service as well. Many government
Emergency Operations Center
An emergency operations center (EOC) is a central command and control facility responsible for carrying out the principles of emergency preparedness and emergency management, or disaster management functions at a strategic level during an emerg ...
s, Red Cross Chapters and
National Weather Service
The National Weather Service (NWS) is an agency of the United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weather-related products to organizations and the public for the ...
facilities have permanent Amateur Radio stations installed for such operations.
The ARRL provides extensive documentation on how to conduct emergency radio communications, including its Public Service Communications Manual.
Radio clubs independent of the ARRL and ARES also participate in emergency communications activities in some areas, and some non-radio organizations have their own amateur arm. The
Department of Defense Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to:
Current departments of defence
* Department of Defence (Australia)
* Department of National Defence (Canada)
* Department of Defence (Ireland)
* Department of National Defense (Philipp ...
sponsors the
Military Auxiliary Radio System
The Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS) is a United States Department of Defense sponsored program, established as a separately managed and operated program by the United States Army, and the United States Air Force. The United States Navy-M ...
(MARS) program which utilizes Amateur Radio operators for emergency communication using military radio frequencies. The National Weather Service
Skywarn
Skywarn (sometimes stylized as SKYWARN) is a program of the National Weather Service (NWS). Its mission is to collect reports of localized severe weather in the United States. These reports are used to aid forecasters in issuing and verifying sev ...
weather-spotter program has a strong amateur radio contingent. And amateurs dedicated to the Salvation Army are organized under their
Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network
The Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network (SATERN) is a network of volunteer amateur radio operators that provide emergency communications between Salvation Army posts, and pass messages with health and welfare information between the S ...
program.
Emergency communications and disaster assistance is usually done in conjunction with volunteer disaster relief organizations such as the
American Red Cross, the
Salvation Army, local government emergency management agencies, as well as volunteer fire departments and ambulance corps.
The
ARRL
The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) is the largest membership association of amateur radio enthusiasts in the United States. ARRL is a non-profit organization, and was co-founded on April 6, 1914, by Hiram Percy Maxim and Clarence D. Tuska o ...
has memoranda of understanding with numerous agencies expected to receive services, including the
American Red Cross and
Salvation Army and is a partner in the
Citizen Corps
Citizen Corps is a program under the Department of Homeland Security that provides training for the population of the United States to assist in the recovery after a disaster or terrorist attack. Each local Citizen Corps Council partners with orga ...
program of the
Federal Emergency Management Agency
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Ex ...
(FEMA). The ARRL also is a member of the
National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster
The National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (National VOAD, or NVOAD) is a coalition of the major national voluntary organizations in the United States that have made disaster-related work a priority. National VOAD member agencies provi ...
(NVOAD) and conducts emergency communications certification courses for interested Amateur Radio operators.
ARRL: Continuing Education Course Catalog
/ref>
See also
* Emergency communication system An emergency communication system (ECS) is any system (typically computer-based) that is organized for the primary purpose of supporting one-way and two-way communication of emergency information between both individuals and groups of individuals. ...
References
External links
ARRL Backgrounder: Amateur Radio Emergency Communication
Navy-Marine Corps MARS with links to Air Force and Army programs
* IARU-R1 Emco
{{Telecommunications
Amateur radio emergency communications,
Emergency communication