ARES
The Amateur Radio Emergency Service ® (ARES ® ) consists of licensed amateurs who have voluntarily registered their qualifications and equipment for communications duty in the public service and 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. You can read the official ARRL material on ARES here.
ARES is organized regionally. The regions match the regions used by the Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection. In Southwest CT, we are in region 1. There are five “district emergency coordinators”, or DECs that report into the SEC. You can learn much more about ARES in Connecticut here: www.ctares.org.
ARES members can participate in public service events to provide communications support that enhances the safety of the operation. Events like charity bike rides and runs are classic examples where amateur radio provides the organizers with communications that cover a wide area. These events help ARES members practice their skills in deploying their equipment and operating on a “controlled net” to practice effective communications skills.
At this time, we are looking to create relationships with local agencies and organizations to provide assistance during large events and during emergencies. It is important to realize that ARES members don’t “self deploy” during disasters, but are part of an overall emergency preparedness team.
Local Nets
There is a periodic region 1 CERT/ARES net. When called, this net occurs on Tuesday at 8:00 PM. All amateurs are welcome, and encouraged to check into the net. Frequencies for the CERT/ARES net are 146.475 (+ 1 MHz Split) with a PL of 100.0 Hz. At this time GNARC officers are looking into a way to link one of our repeaters into the statewide net that occurs on Sundays.
You can also learn more about CERT, which is a fast growing emergency preparedness organization across the country, see http://www.fema.gov/community-emergency-response-teams. You can also contact local CERT leaders in Wilton, Stamford, Fairfield, Westport and other Region 1 towns. More towns are turning to CERT to help in emergencies, and the addition of amateur radio to the CERT is important to operations.
For more information, please contact Paul Lourd, WB2JVB, DEC Connecticut Region 1.
Charles, N1LLL and Erika, KC1BLS installed the beam this past Sunday! Sam, NV1P, arrived later on as well and lent a hand ! Wow. A few photos are attached.
GNARC member Steve Dick, K1RF, will present “Software Defined Radio (SDR) for Amateur Radio – An Overview”. This talk will cover what is SDR, how it works, basic types, some examples of current equipment from low end to high end, how SDR has evolved, and how to access SDR radios on the internet for free! Some short videos of SDR SSB and CW operation will be included. The talk will be followed by a demonstration of an actual SDR receiver. Steve is an amateur extra and an electrical engineer who has built and used several SDRs and has closely followed the amateur radio SDR market.
All are welcome!
This presentation will be at the Westport Astronomical Society / Rolnick Observatory on December 4th, 2014 at 7:30pm.
182 Bayberry Lane
Westport, CT
Check out some photos of the tower raising at our communications center!
The tower is being installed at the new communications center. Tower sections 1 and 2 are installed. The first section is through bolted to a steel I-beam in the building in four places. We will be looking for some volunteers to help with installation of the third (and final for now) section and the beam.
As part of a demonstration project, to show the technical capabilities of the GNARC members, several hams have worked to setup a video link from the 2014 Norwalk Oyster Festival back to emergency managers at Fire HQ. This will allow real time viewing of the amusement ride area of the park. In the future GNARC will be able to deploy this technology rapidly to assist emergency managers in getting “eyes on” views during critical events.
The radio link originates at a light pole in Vets park (very near our field day site). It is then received at the top of the hospital and relayed to fire HQ. This is done with an IP camera over the normal 5.x Gig wifi standard using high gain dishes.
Some photos are attached.
Live view of the area shown on a PC at Fire HQ
This is one of the dishes relaying the signal from the bullet IP camera
View from the ground of the setup.
It is at a good height to be able to “see” the hospital.
The GNARC “stuff for sale” team had a good trip to the 2014 Antique Wireless Association World Convention in Rochester, NY. The group consisted of Sam, Rachel, Steve, Roberta, Tim, Jim, and Don.
The convention program presented a wonderful range of events starting with a personally escorted tour of the AWA Museum Complex on Tuesday and ending with the “paper collectibles”, vacuum tube, and equipment auction on Saturday.
Outstanding progress has been made at the museum, featuring thoughtfully assembled equipment exhibits in beautifully appointed surroundings. The various presentations in the next few days covered an appropriate variety of amateur and antique radio interests. The Thursday/Friday flea market gave the seven person “sales crew” a good opportunity to market our goodies. The equipment contest was supported with many entries; Sam and Don won ribbons with their exhibits. On Friday, there was a fine dinner and a very interesting talk about Voice of America.
After a well-run auction with a large crowd in attendance, the team had an uneventful trip home.
Click here for the photos!
