ARES Activates as Florida Girds for Hurricane Matthew
10/06/2016
The
entire State of Florida now is under an Amateur Radio Emergency Service
(ARES) Level 1 — or full — activation
as Hurricane Matthew heads for landfall in the US. The deadly storm
already has caused 16 deaths, most of them in Haiti, as it moved
northward through the Caribbean. Northern Florida Section Emergency
Coordinator Strait Hollis, KT4YA, will oversee the ARES
activation for the entire state. The Northern Florida ARES Net, under
HF Net Manager Don Duckett, N9MN, has been called up on 3950 or 7252 kHz —
depending upon propagation — starting at 1300 UTC and will remain operational for the duration of the threat.
“This net is for life safety communications,” ARRL Northern Florida Section
Manager Steve Szabo, WB4OMM, stressed. “This net is not for
collecting weather data, idle conversations,
or ‘chit chat.’” Szabo called on operators outside of the Northern
Florida or Southern Florida sections having “good solid access to HF” to contact Duckett
with their availability to serve as net control stations and to check into the net.
The Statewide Amateur Radio Network (SARnet)
also has been activated for statewide use for life safety
communications, starting at 1300 UTC and continuing until terminated.
SARnet is a network of linked UHF repeaters serving Florida. Szabo asked
operators in the Florida Panhandle or in the West Central
Florida Section with solid access to SARnet to contact Assistant
Section Manager Dave Dave Davis, WA4WES, with their availability to serve as net control operators.
[See item below for additional frequencies in use for hurricane nets.]