Risking all to warn others

By betting their own lives, storm trackers helped others stay informed of hot spots.

Didi Tang and Amos Bridges

News-Leader

As others took shelter from the devastating storms Monday night, several hundred Ozarkers headed in the opposite direction.
In the driving rain, wind and lightning, volunteer weather spotters put their own safety on the line to provide firsthand information to meteorologists and emergency managers tracking the storms.

Spotters and amateur radio operators form an integral part of emergency response, those officials said, although the volunteer efforts often take place out of the public eye.

"They provide a tremendous service to the National Weather Services and the community because they are the eyes — they are telling us what's actually happening," said Gerry Claycomb, a NWS meteorologist in Springfield.

At emergency management offices in Springfield and surrounding counties, spotter reports helped officials determine when to activate warning sirens and where to direct response teams.

"We've got a radar in front of us, but the radar is just a radar," said Ryan Nicholls, director of the Springfield-Greene County Office of Emergency Management. "We need some eyes on the scene ...

"These guys go out any time of the day or night, leave their families and go out there to provide a public service."

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Beta Testing new site.

Hello everyone,

I was bored this afternoon watching football... so I decided to play some with the Andersonville Volunteer Fire Department website that I am also the webmaster. The new page is located here at the BETA page.

Please let me know what you think about, the ONLY pages that are active are the HOME and NEWS pages at the moment. The others will follow once everyone is happy with it.

Feel free to let me know what you think, likes and dislikes.

Happy New Year!

Moe

2007 SKYWARN Recognition Day

Hams and the National Weather Service: Working Together for SKYWARN Recognition Day:


The Ninth Annual SKYWARN Recognition Day recognizes Amateur Radio operators for their commitment to help keep communities safe. Co-sponsored by the ARRL and the National Weather Service (NWS), the event is scheduled for Saturday, December 1. During this 24 hour special event, Amateur Radio operators, working together with their local NWS offices, will activate Amateur Radio stations and work as a team to contact other hams across the world.

"This is a fun event," said ARRL Media and Public Relations Manager Allen Pitts, W1AGP. "For 364 days of the year, hams aid in providing the NWS offices with real-time information on severe weather when people and property are at risk. But this one day is for fun, friendship and recognition of the critical services given to communities by the hams."

Scott Mentzer, N0QE, organizer of the event and Meteorologist-In-Charge at the NWS office in Goodland, Kansas, concurred. "Radio amateurs are a tremendous resource for the National Weather Service. These folks are dedicated, and the assistance they provide throughout the year is invaluable. SKYWARN Recognition Day is our way of saying thank you."

In 2006, 90 NWS offices across the country participated and logged more than 16,000 radio contacts, according to Goodland's Warning Coordination Meteorologist David Floyd, N5DBZ. In typical SKYWARN operations during severe weather, direct communication between mobile spotters and local NWS offices provides critical "ground truth" information for forecasters. In summer, spotter reports of hail size, wind damage and storm rotation in real time greatly assist the radar warning operator, since that information can be correlated with Doppler radar displays. In winter, snow nets are held, where reports of snow totals, ice accumulations and whiteout conditions in blowing snow help NWS forecasters assess the extent and severity of winter storms. In recent years during wildfire situations, Amateur Radio operators have reported the precise locations of thick smoke and zero visibility, allowing forecasters to provide crucial weather updates to fire fighters.

"NWS offices utilize the real-time reporting of weather events to assist in warning operations, but certainly hurricanes Katrina and Rita have shown us that ham radio operators are equally important during the recovery phase of large-scale natural disasters," Floyd pointed out. He also cited the example of the Hurricane Watch Net (HWN). He notes that the HWN, organized in 1965 during Hurricane Betsy, started out as an informal group of amateurs but has since developed a formal relationship with the National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami via its Amateur Radio station WX4NHC. Ham radio operators and volunteers at Miami work together when hurricanes threaten to provide real-time weather data and damage reports to the Hurricane Center's forecasters.

For more information on SKYWARN Recognition Day, including a list of participating NWS offices, QSL card and certificate information, please see the NWS Web site.

The Morristown TN NWS ham plans to be on the air also but at the time of this posting details were still being worked out.

Winter Weather Awareness Week

Is it that time already, it seems that just a few weeks ago we experienced 80 to 90 degree weather, oh yes, we did. In some years by mid to late November, we have experienced some significant snows in the Southern Appalachians, so we like to get the word out and get people thinking about the hazards of winter. This years pamphlet about winter weather can be found at:

2007 / 2008 Forecast

Running Barefoot on the Beach

By H. P. "Pete" Friedrichs, AC7ZL

November 13, 2007

Casual QRP in a Tropical Paradise

The phone in my office rang. I picked up the receiver. My wife's voice buzzed in the earpiece.

"Have you ever been to Puerto Rico?" She asked.

"No, why?" I chuckled, wondering what would come next.

She explained that her employer was sending her to San Juan for a week on business. "Why don't you go with me? It’ll be fun." Hmmm... Let's see... a nice hotel room, warm ocean air, the beach... she didn't have to twist my arm very far.

"That sounds great. I'll put in for the vacation time." We chatted for a bit longer, and then I hung up the phone.

For better or for worse, radio and electronics are never far from my thoughts. So, as I daydreamed about my pending trip, my thoughts wandered to all of the QST articles I'd read concerning DXpeditions and those who travel in order to operate from the remote corners of the earth. I didn't know if Puerto Rico counted as an "exotic" location, or even DX, but I decided that doing a little radio work while I relaxed might be a lot of fun. I wondered if my license would be valid there.

Puerto Rico is a sovereign nation. On the other hand, it's also a commonwealth of the United States. So while Puerto Rico is self-governing, the President of Puerto Rico is in fact the president of the United States, and many US federal agencies like the FCC have jurisdiction there. To confirm this, I shot an e-mail over to the ARRL offices, asking if any special paperwork would be required to operate in Puerto Rico. They responded that none was needed

Read More

Iraq to Be Back on the Air Later This Month

(Nov 13, 2007) -- Diya Sayah, YI1DZ, President of the Iraqi Amateur Radio Society (IARS), announced today that effective November 20, all Amateur Radio activity will be "back to normal" in Iraq. Sayah said, "All Amateur Radio operators in Iraq who carry a valid Iraqi license will be able to use their radios according to regulations of IARU Region 1 and the IARS." Amateur Radio activity in Iraq was suspended in March of this year, with the suspension affecting both Iraqi citizens as well as any foreigners -- including military personnel and contractors -- who have been on the air from Iraq. The request to halt all ham radio activity and the issuance of licenses in Iraq originated with a letter from the Iraqi Ministry of Defense to Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki as part of a new security plan, Sayah said.

From the ARRL Website

Child Abduction Emergency

Anderson (Tennessee)

TNC001-007-009-011-013-019-025-029-057-059-063-065-067-073-089-091- 093-105-107-115-121-123-129-139-143-145-151-153-155-163-171-173-179- 092045- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED CHILD ABDUCTION EMERGENCY TENNESSEE BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION NASHVILLE TN RELAYED BY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN 145 PM CDT TUE OCT 9 2007 ...AMBER ALERT... THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE IS TRANSMITTED AT THE REQUEST OF THE TENNESSEE BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION. AN EASTERN TENNESSEE REGIONAL AMBER ALERT HAS BEEN ISSUED BY THE WASHINGTON COUNTY SHERIFFS OFFICE FOR COURTNEE LEAH MAUPIN. SHE WAS ABDUCTED BY HER FATHER CORY MAUPIN WHO HAS THREATENED HER LIFE AND HIS LIFE. COURTNEE MAUPIN IS A 5 MONTH OLD WHITE FEMALE. SHE IS 23 INCHES LONG AND WEIGHS 17 POUNDS WITH BLUE EYES AND BROWN HAIR. COURTNEE WAS LAST SEEN WEARING A WHITE ONESIE OUTFIT WITH YELLOW DUCKS IN THE FRONT. THE FATHER CORY MAUPIN IS A 19 YEAR OLD WHITE MALE WITH BLACK HAIR AND BROWN EYES. HE IS 5 FEET AND 7 INCHES TALL AND WEIGHS 150 POUNDS. CORY MAUPIN IS DRIVING A 1981 BLUE FLEETWOOD CADILLAC WITH TENNESSEE REGISTRATION 4 2 4 R J K WITH THE CADILLAC EMBLEM MISSING FROM THE TRUNK. $$ JAO 

--
Moe Brewer  N4CQW
Anderson County Assistant EC

News letter and Hamfest

Hi everyone,

I am way behind again. Soccer has kept me tied up. Get a little time off for Fall Break and I am trying to get caught up.

I have uploaded the September newsletter to the website September News Letter and will get the one for October posted as soon as I get it.

The NEW October issue and previous monthly News Letters can be found here.

I have also updated the hamfest pages. Oak Ridge 2007 Hamfest Please look over them and make sure everything is correct.

I hope to make the meeting tomorrow and will be at the Hamfest.

Anything else I can do to help?

Jeff
K4IK

The 8th annual TEN-TEC Factory Hamfest

Welcome hams from around the country to the 8th annual Ten-Tec factory hamfest! Discounts on used Ten-Tec ham radio equipment, promotional giveaways on new gear! Door prizes! Tour of the Ten-Tec factory! Meet the Ten-Tec factory representatives! 4 HF stations will be simultaneously on the air to try out the latest equipment. License testing at 1:00 Saturday afternoon. Bencher/Ten-Tec Friday night CW copying contest, 7:00 p.m., hosted by Willard Sitton, W4HZD. Winner takes home a new Bencher iambic paddle.

When:
Friday 9/28/07 3 p.m. - 8 p.m.
Saturday 9/29/07 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Where:
Ten-Tec, Inc., 1185 Dolly Parton Parkway, Sevierville, TN 37862. We are 2 1/2 miles east of downtown Sevierville on highway 411 north, across the street from Sevier County High School.

Admission:
FREE admission and FREE tailgating. Tailgating Saturday only.

Tailgating:
Tennessee's largest tailgating session! Tailgating in the rear parking lot and grass areas behind the Ten-Tec building. Tailgating setup begins 7:00 Saturday morning. BYO tables + chairs. NO COMPUTER OR NON-HAM RADIO VENDORS - amateur radio items or related electronics only.

Read More

Pentagon Amateur Radio Club to Host Special Event Station Commemorating 9/11

Pentagon Amateur Radio Club to Host Special Event Station Commemorating 9/11 (Sep 4, 2007) -- On Sunday, September 9, the Pentagon Amateur Radio Club (PARC) will operate a Special Event station commemorating the 6th anniversary of the attacks that occurred on the Pentagon, the World Trade Center and over Pennsylvania in 2001. They will be operating on 10, 15, 20, 40 and 80 meters, both phone and CW where and when possible, with plans to operate on a 12 hour basis (1200-2400 UTC). There will be a special QSL card available for stations that work K4AF. For more information, please contact Claude Hennessey, KG4TVN. QSL via PARC, PO Box 2322, Arlington, VA 22202. In addition, club members will operate from the station on Tuesday, September 11 as part of the commemoration. -- Thx Jeffery W. Wilson, AI4IO

SPECIAL EVENT STATION W4C TO OPERATE FROM CLAIBORNE COUNTY, TN FAIR

SPECIAL EVENT STATION W4C TO OPERATE FROM CLAIBORNE COUNTY, TN FAIR

The Claiborne County, TN ARES will operate special event station W4C at the Claiborne County Fair from August 27th through September 1st, 2007. We'll be recruiting amateur radio, ARES, and Citizen Corps membership at the fair. There will be sign-up for ham license and CERT training classes to be given in September and October. We'll be demonstrating HF SSB and CW, welfare traffic handling, and 2-meter FM and APRS operation at the booth.

W4C will operate from 1900-2400Z (3PM to 8PM EDT) on or near 14.235, 7.190, or 3.815 MHz SSB, with occasional operation on or near 14.035 or 7.035 MHz CW. We'll start out on 20-meters, and QSY to 40- and 80- meters as conditions dictate. We may also start operation earlier in the day.

Certificates will be available to all stations contacting us. Send SASE to Claiborne County ARES c/o Rick Blasco NX6R, P.O. Box 279, New Tazewell, TN 37824-0279. Use #10 or larger envelope (prefer 8-1/2 x 11 to keep certificate flat) with first class postage affixed.

Check our website http://www.claibornecountyares.org or email nx6r@claibornecountyares.org for more details.

Edited by NX6R on July 29 2007,17:15

--
Moe Brewer  N4CQW
Anderson County Assistant EC
n4cqw@etskywarn.org
Webmaster for www.etskywarn.org and http://www.w4aca.org
Webmaster for the blogs of http://w4aca.blogspot.com and http://etskywarn.blogspot.com