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********************************************
The ARES Letter

Published by the American Radio Relay League ********************************************

February 15, 2023

Editor: Rick Palm, K1CE <k1ce@arrl.net>

IN THIS ISSUE

- ARES® Briefs, Links
- Tennessee County's "Hurricane William" ARRL/ARES SET
- Amateur Radio at the 2023 Loppet Winter Festival
- Get the CISA Auxiliary Communications Field Operations Guide (AUXFOG)
- All Aboard the CERT Train
- ARES® Resources
- ARRL Resources

ARES® BRIEFS, LINKS

On the evening of Monday, February 6, 2023, there was a 7.8 magnitude earthquake that mainly affected Turkey and Syria as well as other
neighboring countries with almost 35,000 dead (at press time) and more
than 16,000 injured, with likely many more. According to information
received from the emergency coordinators of the IARU Region 1 countries
and, especially from Greg Mossop, G0DUB, the emergency communications coordinator for this region, communications in Turkey have been mainly
on VHF, but transmissions in Turkish have also been heard on 28.540
MHz, although they can also use 3.777 MHz and 7.092 MHz. For this
reason, we ask our colleagues in IARU Region 2 (the Americas) to
protect those frequencies and assess the evolving situation for
opportunities to serve the relief effort.

As for Syria, it has been reported that apparently there are not many
radio amateurs there, so we do not know if there is any frequency in
use in that country. Aziz Sasa, TA1E, Turkish emergency communications coordinator, suggested that any help from other countries should be
coordinated through the Turkish embassy in each country. Humanitarian
aid groups from several European countries are currently moving into
the affected regions.

We appreciate the concern of colleagues from IARU Region 2 member
societies regarding this earthquake. We offer our condolences to all
the people and colleagues in the countries affected by this terrible
disaster. - Statement by Carlos Alberto Santamaría Gonzalez, CO2JC,
Emergency Coordinator, IARU Region 2

TENNESSEE COUNTY'S "HURRICANE WILLIAM" ARRL/ARES SET

The Williamson County, Tennessee ARES <http://www.wcares.org/>
Simulated Emergency Test (SET) was designed as a county-wide emergency communications exercise to test our organization's ability to provide communications for our primary served agency, the Williamson County
Emergency Management Agency (WCEMA), as well as the National Weather
Service (NWS).

The exercise scenario entailed a slow-moving, heavy rainmaking
"Hurricane William," which had been downgraded to a tropical storm.
Carrying substantial moisture up from the Gulf of Mexico, William
caused significant flooding in Williamson County requiring evacuations
and the opening of multiple shelters. To add an extra level of
complexity to the exercise, the event simulated a county-wide Public
Safety radio system outage.

Exercise play began on Saturday, October 15, 2022 at 0800 CDT, ended at
1100 CDT, and concluded with a hotwash (after-action discussion and
evaluation) at the WCEMA EOC from 1145 to 1215. ARES and SKYWARN play
occurred throughout the 3-hour exercise period.

The exercise was formally closed at 1215 following the completion of
the hotwash.

The exercise was led by the WCARES Emergency Coordinator, Jeff
Standifer, WB5WAJ.

During the SET, eight WCARES mobile radio operators connected the
Williamson County ECOMM 911 dispatch center to 10 Emergency Response
partners from multiple municipal agencies, including Law Enforcement,
Fire & Rescue, and EMS.

Three simulated shelters were activated in response to the simulated
flood event. Seven radio operators established stand-alone radio
operations at the three sites using their own power and radio equipment
to provide status reports back to Net Control and the Williamson County Emergency Management Agency.

The Net Control Team included an additional seven operators utilizing
multiple modes, including our WCARES 5-linked repeater system and
backup repeater, DMR, and Winlink.

Communication was managed between the three shelters, the 10 emergency
response partners, and other participating WCARES members who provided requested information regarding shelter status, weather, and flood
conditions as well as the status of public utilities. Vital information
was obtained from field sources and relayed to the Williamson County
Emergency Management Agency and the National Weather Service.

We quickly re-learned the importance of the consistent use of
tactical call signs. Net Control depended on tactical call signs to
help them quickly identify and manage heavy traffic from multiple
mobile operators and shelters. We also confirmed that a handheld is insufficient for use as a backup or secondary radio. When the primary
radio is engaged in Winlink traffic, an additional mobile radio is
needed for voice communication. In spite of our linked repeater system,
terrain in certain locations within the county negates the use of
low-powered handheld radios.

The 2022 SET successfully demonstrated that WCARES has the skills,
depth, and commitment to serve our community by providing communication
support for activated emergency shelters and continuity of
communication in the event of a catastrophic Public Safety radio system
outage. -- Jeff Schwartz, KC1DWP, Emergency Coordinator, Williamson
County, Tennessee <KC1DWP@arrl.net> [Schwartz served as Chair of the
WCARES Exercise Committee that designed the 2022 SET exercise. He is an
active member of the Net Control team. -- Ed.]

AMATEUR RADIO AT THE 2023 LOPPET WINTER FESTIVAL

With around 3,000 participants, the Minneapolis City of Lakes Loppet
Winter Festival (City of Lakes Loppet Winter Festival - The Loppet
Foundation <https://www.loppet.org/events/festival/>) is a weekend of
mostly Nordic urban ski and fat tire bike races. Two of the events are
fairly long, up to 31 km, with four aid stations. I was asked for 2023
to pull together a team to provide medical communications. The injury
rate is low (not much heatstroke), but the race course winds through
wooded parks, and sections are not accessible by road, so snowmobile
transport is required. We are out in temperatures down to -4 F for 6
hours each day. I sat down with our boss, Dr. Bixby, and asked who was
staffing the aid stations. He said, "You are." Several of us have been
trying to close the gap on first aid training, but this was new.

In fact, there was a large and highly qualified medical team assigned
but they were on patrol in hilly and crash-prone areas. Aid stations
were more transport hubs near roads. The injuries we see are often from
a tumble, and worsen with a "fast," i.e., icy, course. I staffed up
with half hams, and half US Coast Guard Auxiliary volunteers. The
Auxiliary members are good as Strike Teams -- they do not require
extensive supervision and are experts in Incident Command. We are
participant facing - more like operations, less like logistics.

A mashup of communications systems were used. We brought DMR radios,
the event used borrowed hospital P25 radios, and we all used WhatsApp
for live messaging. The event was packed for 2023, and the parking lots
were full. I decided not to bring our mobile tower trailer repeaters to
save room, and used existing borrowed DMR machines.

The first day we had a lot of problems with a busy DMR time slot on
the repeater, even using a local talk group. For several hours,
unrelated out-of-area (internet) traffic was using the system and we
could not get in. We tried a different repeater, (which was not in one
of the radio model code plugs for the area) and had similar issues. One
thought was to use the Statewide talkgroup, but that seemed ill advised
for 2 days. The analog FM machine I signed out as backup was not in the
DMR code plug in several of our radios.

The result was better on another machine the second day. The repeater
owner suggested unplugging the internet cable from the repeater, which
helped. My boss in ARES, SEC Benton Jackson, K0BHJ, says "all
emergencies are local" - so the value at an event of a repeater acting
as a wide area Internet hotspot seems limited.

We tested DMR simplex, which is another possibility. We found some
newer code plugs, which were missing on our portable repeater, based on
an earlier fixed system which was just taken out of service.

Peter Corbett, KD8GBL, brought up our Trivnetdb <http://www.kb8zqz.org/trivnetdb/> database in Azure. This was loaded
with the event participant names and bib numbers. These could then be
queried and updated based on the situation. And we had our chat feature
and even capacity graphs. Our Medical Director was impressed. The idea
is fast, crisp incident response, without delayed or garbled medical
messages.

We really did a good job: at one incident, our aid station rep ran an
injured skier situation on the P25 radio very professionally. I like
the role as Event Lead, as I can reach into the organization leadership
team without causing waves.

My phone rang. It was the Race Director, saying, "Where are you? I'm in
a snow tractor. Prepare to hop in -- the main sound system has failed
and we are reading out finish results." As we are in the backup
communications space, when we were in charge of the PA systems, we
bought a spare PA mixer we found on eBay, and it saved the day. Also
notable was the part at the Leads Meeting when applause broke out when
it was announced ham radio was, again, all in to help. -- Erik
Westgard, NY9D, ASEC-T Minnesota Section

GET THE CISA AUXILIARY COMMUNICATIONS FIELD OPERATIONS GUIDE

(AUXFOG)

Interoperability: "The ability of emergency responders to communicate
among jurisdictions, disciplines, frequency bands, and levels of
government as needed and as authorized. System operability is required
for system interoperability."

Volunteer organizations such as community emergency response teams and auxiliary communications volunteers (e.g., amateur radio operators)
play key roles in emergency communications and preparedness. Volunteer emergency communications operators and groups using amateur radio have
been providing backup communications to event planners, public safety officials, and emergency managers at all levels of government for
nearly 100 years. Often, amateur radio services have been used when
other forms of communications have failed or have been disrupted.
Today, nearly all the states and territories have incorporated some
level of participation by amateur radio auxiliary communication
operators into their Tactical Interoperable Communications Plans <https://www.cisa.gov/emergency-communications-guidance-documents-and-publications#:~:text=Tactical%20Interoperable%20Communications%20Plan%20Template,structures%2C%20technology%20assets%2C%20and%20usage>
and Statewide Communication Interoperability Plans <https://www.cisa.gov/statewide-communication-interoperability-plans>;
this allows them to quickly integrate the operators into response
efforts, which can strengthen communications and operations during
incidents of any scale. You can download the Auxiliary Communications
Field Operations Guide (AUXFOG) and other valuable FOGs on the
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) website publications/resources page <https://www.cisa.gov/safecom/field-operations-guides>. You can also
download an electronic copy from the Apple and Google App stores.

ALL ABOARD THE CERT TRAIN

The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) concept is a major,
growing concern in the quickly evolving arena of emergency management
on a micro versus macro scale, and deserves the full attention of ARES
-- and indeed any radio amateur -- as a top priority for the coming
year.

CERT is the wave of the future -- the immediate future -- as limited
resources for disaster response at all levels of government (local,
state, and federal) are bumping up against the ever-increasing needs of
the populace due to the elevating incidence and ferocity of natural and
manmade disasters. The CERT concept is part of the answer to this
dilemma: residents on a street or in an apartment complex will network
and be trained to take care of themselves in the first critical
post-disaster hours and possibly days when no outside help is
available. Think of the CERT program as a kind of block party, only
instead of socializing over hot dogs and hamburgers, neighbors get
together to train and plan to look after each other when dealing with
the effects of a disaster. When you really think about this concept, it
has implications that are of a serious, life-and-death nature.

The CERT program is a FEMA program, part of its Citizen Corps and Ready campaigns, but had its origins in forward-thinking fire and EMS units
in southern California decades ago. Neighbors are trained in conducting
an initial assessment of their own homes and survival kits. They learn
to reduce the immediate dangers presented by a disaster by turning off utilities, suppressing small fires, evacuating the area, and helping
others. They learn to treat people in the immediate area. They learn to implement their own Incident Command System -- they establish a command
post, staging area, and medical triage and treatment areas. They learn
to collect damage information and develop a plan of operation based on life-saving priorities and available resources. And they learn to
establish and maintain communications with responders and the outside
world.

The radio amateur, especially an ARES-registered operator, is the ideal candidate for forming and leading a neighborhood Community Emergency
Response Team. A critical part of the CERT's planning and operations is
radio communications, and we as radio amateurs have the experience and credibility for this emergency support function out of the gate. Become
a CERT leader! Every journey of recruiting a dozen homes on a street
for a CERT begins with the first, perhaps your next door neighbor. Talk
to him or her "over the fence" and start planning and drafting your
team. Read and use the FEMA publication CERT User Guide <https://fema-customer-correspondence.my.salesforce.com/sfc/p/#F0000000BqIq/a/t0000000mxaS/0w6gTgbD_2yrJ3ZjzXx4s_DOh4sughmo2SAfw0AdMAA>.
There are many resources to help you! You can start with FEMA's
Independent Study Course on CERT <https://training.fema.gov/is/courseoverview.aspx?code=IS-317.a&lang=en>.
A reader recently called my attention to a new library of
disaster-related training with numerous videos, including several on Neighborhood Preparedness and Response. I haven't had a chance to
review the materials yet, but I will. The library can be accessed at
the Just In Time Disaster Training
<http://www.justintimedisastertraining.org/> website.

FEMA has a number of resources available to the CERT members and
leader. You can get the CERT National Newsletter <https://nationalcert.org/resources/newsletters> as well as Search CERT programs by location <https://community.fema.gov/PreparednessCommunity/s/cert-find-a-program?language=en_US>.

You can register <https://community.fema.gov/PreparednessCommunity/s/about-registering-a-cert?language=en_US>
a new CERT program with FEMA online. This page is for registering CERT
programs only, however, not to register individuals or individual teams sponsored by a local CERT program. To be an official CERT program, the
program must be operated by a local emergency response organization
such as your local Fire Department or Office of Emergency Management
and endorsed by the local Citizen Corps Council, if your community has
one. The program coordinators must conduct the CERT Basic Training
Course and hold a CERT exercise at least once a year. There must be a
point of contact to be posted with other program information on the
national CERT website.

Search to find a CERT program in your locale to help you set up and
establish your neighborhood CERT. The CERT concept can also be extended
to workplaces -- the same ideals apply!

Conclusion: You are On Your Own! "Winging It is Not an Emergency Plan"

The government's promotional language often reads like this: "When a
disaster or overwhelming event occurs and responders are not
immediately available, CERTs can assist..." Let's examine what they're
really saying in plain terms: When your house and family are in
immediate danger in the first minutes and hours after a disaster, you
are on your own. There will likely be no EMS, fire, police or any other
agency responders to save you and your family and neighbors. Your
survival is up to you alone, based on your preparations and the help
from your immediate neighbors on your street. Your chances will be
greatly enhanced with an organized neighborhood response -- the kind of response that is at the heart of the CERT concept. Make it your New
Year's resolution to form your own neighborhood CERT! -- Rick Palm,
K1CE

ARES® RESOURCES

- Download the ARES Manual [PDF] <http://www.arrl.org/files/file/Public%20Service/ARES/ARESmanual2015.pdf>
- ARES Field Resources Manual [PDF] <http://www.arrl.org/files/file/ARES_FR_Manual.pdf>
- ARES Standardized Training Plan Task Book [Fillable PDF] <http://www.arrl.org/files/file/Public%20Service/ARES/ARRL-ARES-FILLABLE-TRAINING-TASK-BOOK-V2_1_1.pdf>
- ARES Standardized Training Plan Task Book [Word] <http://www.arrl.org/files/file/Public%20Service/ARES/ARRL-ARES-STANDARDIZED-TRAINING-TASK-BOOK-V1_2_2.doc>
- ARES Plan <http://www.arrl.org/ares-plan>
- ARES Group Registration
<http://www.arrl.org/ares-group-id-request-form>
- Emergency Communications Training <http://www.arrl.org/emergency-communications-training>

The Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES) consists of licensed
amateurs who have voluntarily registered their qualifications and
equipment, with their local ARES leadership, for communications duty in
the public service when disaster strikes. Every licensed amateur,
regardless of membership in ARRL or any other local or national
organization is eligible to apply for membership in ARES. Training may
be required or desired to participate fully in ARES. Please inquire at
the local level for specific information. Because ARES is an amateur
radio program, only licensed radio amateurs are eligible for
membership. The possession of emergency-powered equipment is desirable,
but is not a requirement for membership.

How to Get Involved in ARES: Fill out the ARES Registration form <http://www.arrl.org/files/file/Public%20Service/fsd98.pdf> and submit
it to your local Emergency Coordinator.

ARRL RESOURCES

Join or Renew Today! <http://www.arrl.org/join> Eligible US-based
members can elect to receive QST <http://www.arrl.org/qst> or On the
Air <http://www.arrl.org/on-the-air-magazine> magazine in print when
they join ARRL or when they renew their membership. All members can
access digital editions of all four ARRL magazines: QST, On the Air,
QEX, and NCJ.

Subscribe to NCJ -- the National Contest Journal
<http://www.arrl.org/ncj>. Published bimonthly, features articles by
top contesters, letters, hints, statistics, scores, NA Sprint and QSO
parties.

Subscribe to QEX -- A Forum for Communications Experimenters <http://www.arrl.org/qex>. Published bimonthly, features technical
articles, construction projects, columns, and other items of interest
to radio amateurs and communications professionals.

Free of charge to ARRL members: Subscribe <http://www.arrl.org/myarrl-account-management#%21/edit-info-email_subscriptions>
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________

The ARES Letter is published on the third Wednesday of each month. ARRL
members may subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing their Member
Data Page as described at http://www.arrl.org/ares-letter.

Copyright (c) 2023 American Radio Relay League, Incorporated.
Use and distribution of this publication, or any portion thereof, is
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