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Amateur Radio Emergency Communications
What do Amateur Radio operators do during and after disasters?
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Amateur Radio operators set up and operate organized communication networks locally for governmental and emergency officials, as well as non-commercial communication for private citizens affected by the disaster. Amateur Radio operators are most likely to be active after disasters that damage regular lines of communications due to power outages and destruction of telephone lines.
How do Amateur Radio operators help local officials?
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Many radio amateurs are active as communications volunteers with local public safety organizations. In addition, in some disasters, radio frequencies are not coordinated among relief officials and Amateur Radio operators step in to coordinate communication when radio towers and other elements in the communications infrastructure are damaged.
What are the major Amateur Radio emergency organizations?
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Amateur Radio operators have informal and formal groups to coordinate communication during emergencies. At the local level, hams may participate in local emergency organizations, or organize local "traffic nets" using VHF (very high frequencies) and UHF (ultra high frequencies). At the state level, hams are often involved with state emergency management operations. In addition, hams operate at the national level through the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES) which is coordinated through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and through the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) which is coordinated through the American Radio Relay League and its field volunteers. In addition, in areas that are prone to tornadoes and hurricanes many hams are involved in SKYWARN, operating under the National Weather Service.
Is Amateur Radio recognized as a resource by national relief organizations?
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Many national organizations have formal agreements with the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) and other Amateur Radio groups including:
- Federal Emergency Management Agency
- National Communications System
- American Red Cross
- Salvation Army
- National Weather Service
- Association of Public Safety Communications Officials
What are some examples of emergencies involving Amateur Radio?
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- Hurricane Frances and Ivan -- September 2004
- Terrorist Attacks in New York &Washington DC -- September 2001
- Tornadoes in Alabama -- December 2000
- Flooding in Arizona -- October 2000
- Fires in Minnesota -- October 2000
- Tornado in Ohio -- September 2000
- Avalanche in Alaska -- March 2000
- Fires in Los Alamos, New Mexico -- May 2000
- Hurricane Floyd -- September 1999
- Tornadoes in Oklahoma and Kansas -- May 1999
- Colombian Earthquake -- January 1999
- Tornadoes in Arkansas and Tennessee -- January 1999
- Hurricane Mitch in Central America -- November 1998
- Flooding in Texas -- October 1998
- Hurricane Georges -- September 1998
- Wildfires in Florida -- June and July 1998
- Tornadoes in Alabama -- April 1998
- Flooding in San Francisco, Calif. -- February 1998
- Tornadoes in Florida -- February 1998
- Tornadoes in Jarrell, Texas -- May 1997
- "500-Year Flood," Grand Forks, N.D., and East Grand Forks, Minn. - April 1997
- Western U.S. floods - January 1997
- Hurricane Fran - September 1996
- TWA plane crash - July 1996
- Blizzard of '96 - March 1996
- Oklahoma City Bombing - April 1995
Today there are nearly 700,000 Amateur Radio operators in the United States and more than 2.5 million worldwide. Information on how to become involved in Amateur Radio is available from the American Radio Relay League, 225 Main Street, Newington, CT 06111 or by calling 1-800-32-NEW HAM. The URL for the ARRL's home page on the World Wide Web is www.arrl.org.
Local Amateur Radio classes run by volunteers usually run during the fall and winter. License exams usually follow the classes. You can go here for a list of contacts.
For more information, contact:
Jennifer Hagy
Media Relations Manager
American Radio Relay League
860-594-0328
jhagy@arrl.org