ARES Information

WB8OIF's Emergency Communications Information Site

ARES Information

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Amateur Radio Emergency Service --ARES (r)

We provide emergency communications because it is exciting,
adventurous, and serves the public. We work side by side with
disaster relief officials from the Red Cross, Salvation Army,
government emergency management and other entities, supplementing
their communications of potentially life and property saving
messages. "EmComm" is a longstanding function of Amateur Radio over
decades, and is what hams are most famous for. There is the thrill
and the deep camaraderie that results from working with our
colleagues in what sometimes are desperate circumstances.

How to get started: Go to <http://www.arrl.org/ares>; and get basic
information and a contact person for ARES, the preeminent amateur
emcomm program. Although ARES is a national program, it is
coordinated at the local and county levels by appointed Emergency
Coordinators (EC). Contact your local EC. A simple 2-meter H-T is all
you need to start your participation. ARES brings you the benefits of
being part of an established team, formal training, recognition,
skill enhancement, and real opportunity to provide emergency
communications when it hits the fan.

- reprinted from the ARRL ARES newsletter, Oct. 15, 2007

(ARES and ARRL are registered trademarks of the Amatuer Radio Relay League.)

ARES is a completely volunteer organization. It is administered and operates under the Amateur Radio Relay League, Inc. (ARRL).

Click here for more information about communicating in an emergency.

ARES is administered at our local level in Berkeley County, WV by our ARES Emergency Coordinator (EC): Ed Dashiell, K8WXI.

At the state level ARES is administered by our WV Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC) Ken Harris, WA8LLM.

Click here to register with the Berkeley County's ARES group.

ARRL Leadership in WV:

Section Manager: Ann Rinehart, KA8ZGY

Asst Section Mgrs: Darrell Ringer, K8WV

                                   Nick Siebold, KB8NDS

Section Emergency Coordinator: Ken Harris,

                                                               WA8LLM

Section Traffic Manager: Tom Jones, N8NMA

Affiliated Club Coordinator: Robert M Adams,

                                                 W8GU

Bulletin Manager: Hal Tate, N8FXH

Official Observer Coordinator: Don Lemley,

                                                     W8DL

Technical Coordinator: Don Lemley, W8DL

Public Information Coordinator: Joe E Richards,

                                                       WV8WVU

State Government Liaison: Bill Hunter, K8BS

WV ARES(r) Bulletin

I will try to keep the latest WV ARES Bulletin posted here, so refer back to read the next one.

TO:      ALL WEST VIRGINIA ARES MEMBERS (OFFICIAL)
         ALL ARES AND NON-ARES AMATEURS ANYWHERE (INFORMATION)
FROM:    KEN HARRIS WA8LLM WV SECTION EMERGENCY COORDINATOR
         WOOD COUNTY EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS INCORPORATED

WV ARES BULLETIN NR 09.13 DATE: March 29, 2009
SUBJECT: TAKE OFF YOUR BLINDERS

For those who don't know what blinders are, here's a very brief description. Blinders are placed near the eyes of horses so they aren't able to see anything beside them. They are used to keep a team of horses from seeing each other, and they can only look in the direction they have their head pointed. The purpose is to give each horse instructions and not let them do what the horse beside him does; otherwise you may lose control of the team.

Since we aren't horses and we can think what to do, we shouldn't wear blinders. Sometimes while looking for the solution to a problem, we become one track minded that we don't go looking elsewhere for the answer. Sometimes it's best to take off the blinders, sit down, drink a cup of coffee, and forget the problem. Sometimes the solution will come to you when you least expect it.

When you think you've run out of ideas on finding a solution to a problem, sit the problem aside and do something else, maybe even sleep on it. That's when I come up with the solutions to a lot of my problems. Don't wear yourself out going down the same road, only to find that it is the same dead end. Look in all directions, or the new saying is "Think outside the box".

Ken Harris WA8LLM
Wood County WV
WV ARES Section Emergency Coordinator
WV ARES District 3 Emergency Coordinator

ARRL Media Relations Form Released for ARES PR

Allen Pitts, W1AGP, Media and PR Manager of the ARRL Headquarters
staff, has released the following report form to be used by ARES
leaders for reporting ARES activations to the media:
________

The _______ Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES(r)) has been
activated to assist with primary/auxiliary emergency communications
for this event. The group is coordinated by _____(name of EC or
acting EC).

_______________ ARES is working with the ______________
county/city/town Office of Emergency Management and the following
agency(ies): ___________

The group is providing communications links between: _________

Amateur Radio operators are stationed at the following locations to
provide communications assistance:
___ (#) of Amateur Radio operators are at the sites
___(#) of additional Amateur Radio operators are on standby for
additional communications needs.

Insert boilerplate paragraph about the local ARES group here:

For more information contact:
________________________ (name of acting PIO)
________________________ (e-mail)
________________________ (phone and cell numbers)

_________

For more information on the new form, contact Allen Pitts, W1AGP,
<w1agp@arrl.org> at ARRL Headquarters.

ARES Training Recommendations

All ARES operators should periodically review their training and
qualifications.
First and foremost, ARES operators should take Level One of the ARRL
Emergency Communications courses, progressing to Levels Two and Three
when possible. Here are some links to find out more about the ARRL
Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Courses:

- Frequently Asked Questions <http://www.arrl.org/cce/faq.html>;
- CCE Course Syllabi <http://www.arrl.org/cce/syllabus.html>;
- Registration for Online Courses <https://www.arrl.org/forms/cce/>;
- Listing of Classroom Courses and Exams
<http://www.arrl.org/cce/activity-list.php3>;
- CI/CE Search Page <http://www.arrl.org/cce/cice-search.php3>;
- Discussion Forum (Members Only)
<http://www.arrl.org/members-only/forums/w-agora.php3>;
- CCE Student Page (Members Only)
<http://www.arrl.org/members-only/cce/>;
- Course Listing <http://www.arrl.org/cce/courses.html>;

In addition to the ARRL Emergency Communications Courses, field
operators should also complete certain formal training courses:

-- Red Cross combined course in Adult CPR/First Aid Basics
-- Red Cross online Introduction to Disaster Services
<http://www.redcross.org/flash/course01_v01/>;

-- FEMA IS-100 (Introduction to Incident Command System)
-- FEMA IS-200 (ICS for Single Resource and Initial Action Incidents)
-- FEMA IS-700 (National Incident Management System)
<http://training.fema.gov/IS/>;

Except for the first two, all courses are free of charge, and
CPR/First Aid may be free to members of the Red Cross. CPR/First Aid
is the only course that requires periodic refreshers and the only
course that must be taken in person rather than on the Internet. The
American Heart Association (AHA) also offers Basic Life Support (BLS)
courses. Where FEMA courses exist in more than one current version -
aimed at somewhat different audiences - any of the
currently-available versions will suffice.

Remember to check in to your local ARES or RACES nets. Be a known participant before disaster strikes!