• Introduction

Your ARES group was formed to serve the public. If you’re not serving the public, your unit isn’t fulfilling its mission. In practical terms, this means that you must continually strive to establish and maintain a close working relationship with public safety and disaster relief agencies. This chapter will assist you in determining the agencies you can serve, the proper method of contacting them and the approach to use in order to present ARES in a professional manner. The suggestions offered in this chapter are simply that, suggestions. Feel free to modify them to fit your situation.

• ARRL Agreements and You

ARRL has signed a number of formal statements, or memoranda, of understanding with several organizations that officially recognize mutual cooperation. These agreements lay the groundwork at the national level for joint local efforts in disasters. The following agreements will assist both you and the local office of the agency concerned. The agreements will give you a bearing of legitimacy when you are discussing ARES with the administrator of that agency. The agreements will also serve to inform—possibly for the first time—the administrator that the agency officially recognizes ARES. When you discuss ARES with organizations with which we have no agreement, mention the agencies we do have agreements with, as well as the League’s involvement with NVOAD (see section 8.10). The fact that we do have several agreements with national and governmental organizations may impress upon the administrator that ARES is indeed a bona fide emergency communications service. Use these agreements as you wish, but use them! ARRL has entered into written agreements with the following organizations, and there are links to each website below for further research.

1.     The American National Red Cross

2.     The Associated Public Safety Officers, Inc. (APCO)

3.     The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

4.     The National Communications System (NCS)

5.     The Salvation Army

6.     The National Weather Service (NWS)

7.     Arkansas Department Of Emergency Management (ADEM)

8.     Arkansas Department Of Health (ADOH)

9.     ADEM PRESS RELEASES

10.   National Weather Service NWS SKYWARN (SKYWARN)

• Red Cross/Salvation Army

The American National Red Cross and the Salvation Army, non-profit disaster relief agencies, should be quite familiar to you as they have been League-allies of long standing. Contacting the local offices of these two agencies is simply a matter of looking them up in your telephone directory and asking for the person in charge of communications. When discussing your group’s capabilities with the administrators, emphasize the role of ARES particularly in Welfare traffic.

• APCO-International

The ARRL/APCO agreement paves the way of more cooperation between police/fire officials, etc., and ARES. The agreement is designed to establish your credibility with law enforcement personnel in emergency planning and response. The Association of Public Safety Communications Officer, International represents over 5,000 members whose primary responsibility is the management, design, maintenance and operation of communications facilities at the federal, state, county and municipal levels. The address of the APCO-International chapter in your vicinity can be obtained from APCO-International, Inc., 2040 S. Ridgewood Ave., South Daytona, FL 32119-8437.

• NCS

NCS is neither a volunteer agency nor a professional association, but an arm of the Federal government. NCS is a confederation of government agencies, established by Presidential order, responsible for ensuring that Federal telecommunications resources meet the most critical requirements for conditions ranging from normal to national emergency. The ARRL Field Organization plays a major role in communications tests sponsored by NCS to enhance the nationwide posture of telecommunications readiness for any conceivable national emergency. In helping to insure that the most critical telecommunications needs of the Federal government can be met in any possible contingency, the capabilities of radio amateurs have received recognition at the highest levels of our government.

• FEMA

FEMA is the Federal agency that provides support to the state and local civil preparedness and emergency management agencies that you will undoubtedly be working with. FEMA HQ is located in Washington, D.C. with ten regional offices throughout the country. FEMA provides technical assistance, financial assistance and guidance to state and local governments wishing to upgrade their emergency communications and warning systems. FEMA also provides support, when required, during and after disasters. FEMA is also in charge of administering the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES) program. RACES is administered by your local or state civil preparedness officials. FEMA recognition of ARRL sponsored emergency preparedness programs can be a powerful tool in selling your ARES capability to local emergency management officials. Such agreements should put to rest forever the “war stories” of the long ago past when an amateur inquiry drew a “slammed door” response.

• RACES

97.407 of the FCC rules provides for RACES, the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service. RACES is a special phase of amateur operation sponsored by FEMA, that provides radio communications for civil preparedness purposes only, during periods of local, regional or national civil emergencies. These emergencies are not limited to war related activities, but can include natural disasters such as fires, floods and earthquakes. As defined in the rules, RACES is a radio service using amateur stations for civil defense communications during periods of local, regional or national civil emergencies. It is important to note that RACES operation is authorized by the FCC upon request of a state or federal official, and is strictly limited to official civil preparedness activity, in the event of an emergency communications situation. Amateurs operating in a local RACES organization must be officially enrolled in that local civil preparedness group. RACES operation is conducted by amateurs using their own primary station licenses, and by existing RACES stations. The FCC no longer issues new RACES (WC prefix) station call signs. Operator privileges in RACES are dependent upon, and identical to, those for the class of license held in the Amateur Radio Service. All of the authorized frequencies and emissions allocated to the Amateur Radio Service are also available to RACES on a shared basis. But in the event that the President invokes his War Emergency Powers, amateurs involved with RACES would be limited to the certain frequencies (while all other amateur operation would be silenced) as specified in 97.407(b)(1). While RACES was originally based on potential use for wartime, it has evolved over the years, as has the meaning of civil defense (which is also called civil preparedness), to encompass all types of emergencies. It should be emphasized again that RACES is part of the amateur service, its regulations are part of the amateur regulations, and it operates in the amateur bands. The segments of the amateur bands it uses are shared with the rest of the amateur service in peacetime; in the event of war, its frequency segments would be exclusive.

• ARES and RACES

Although RACES and ARES are separate entities, the League advocates dual membership and cooperative efforts between both groups whenever possible. The RACES regulations make it simple and possible for an ARES group whose members are all enrolled in and certified by RACES to operate in an emergency with great flexibility. Using the same operators and the same frequencies, an ARES group also enrolled as RACES can “switch hats” from ARES to RACES and RACES to ARES to meet the requirements of the situation as it develops. For example, during a “non-declared emergency,” ARES can operate under ARES, but when an emergency or disaster is officially declared by a state or federal authority, the operation can become RACES with no change in personnel or frequencies. Both ARES and RACES still exist, separately, in many areas. League Officials will have to determine the situation in their own area. Where there is currently no RACES, it would be a simple matter for an ARES group to enroll in that capacity, after a sophisticated presentation to the civil preparedness authorities. In cases where both ARES and RACES exist, it is possible to join both or to be involved in either. As time progresses, the goal would be the merger into one strong organization, with coordination between ARES and RACES officials using the same groups of amateurs. In some sections of the US today, the ARES structure has also been accepted as the RACES structure. For more information on RACES, contact your state emergency management or civil preparedness office, FEMA or the FCC.

• NWS

The National Weather Service (NWS) is an important agency to contact. ARES groups across the nation have established excellent working relationships with the NWS through the SKYWARN system. SKYWARN is a tornado preparedness and severe weather program sponsored by the NWS. Radio amateurs have assisted as communicators and spotters since its inception. In areas where tornadoes have been known to threaten, NWS recruits volunteers, trains them in proper tornado and severe weather spotting procedures, and accepts the volunteers’ reports during tornado or severe thunderstorm watches and warnings. By utilizing the SKYWARN volunteers, the NWS has “eyes and ears” throughout the affected area in conjunction with their sophisticated weather monitoring equipment. Your ARES unit’s services to the NWS in the SKYWARN system are twofold. Your members can be trained to be educated weather observers and you can supply real-time weather information to the NWS when requested. In areas exposed to other weather phenomena such as hurricanes, the NWS can probably use the services of ARES as well. For example, amateurs in the Miami area are not only assisting, they are depended upon by the NWS to provide hurricane information and to disseminate that information as needed. A complete Amateur Radio station has been installed at the National Hurricane Center in Miami for this purpose.

• NVOAD

Another organization that has emerged recently at the state level, and which has enjoyed support from ARES in some parts of the country is the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD). After Hurricane Camille in 1969, organizations that had been involved in providing resources and services to victims and communities affected by disaster shared their mutual concern over the frequent duplication of services. These voluntary organizations encouraged each other, and representatives began to meet on a regular basis. Their purpose: to share their respective activities, concerns, and frustrations in accomplishing disaster response to victims and communities. These organizations, which today make up what is called National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD), have met together at an annual meeting each year since 1971. Their main goal is to increase cooperation, coordination, communication, and to improve disaster legislation. ARRL has been a member of NVOAD for more than 15 years. NVOAD today provides advise and leadership, and cooperates with state VOAD organizations. It has its own logo, publishes a newsletter as well as a directory of participating organizations.

• NDMS

From time to time, ARES members may come into contact with the National Disaster Medical System. Although ARRL does not currently have a formal agreement with this organization, it has lent informal support to its operations, usually at the section level. Here are some frequently asked questions and answers on this program that may assist you in effecting your support in your section. What is NDMS? The NDMS is a federally-coordinated initiative to augment the nation’s emergency medical response capability. The overall purpose of NDMS is to establish a single national medical response capability for:

1) assisting state and local authorities in dealing with the medical and health effects of major peacetime disasters;

2) providing support to the military and Veteran’s Administration medical systems in caring for casualties evacuated back to the US from overseas armed conflicts.

NDMS has three major components:

1). Disaster Medical Assistance Teams (DMATs) and Clearing-Staging Units (CSUs) with necessary supplies and equipment which will be dispatched to a disaster site within the United States from the country’s major metropolitan areas. DMATs/CSUs may also provide NDMS patient reception services at their home locations.

2). An evacuation capability for movement of patients from a disaster area to locations where definitive medical care can be provided.

3). A voluntary hospital network which will provide definitive care. In a domestic disaster, NDMS can be activated by Health and Human Services (HHS) when state resources have been overwhelmed and the state has requested Federal assistance. The Department of Defense will activate the system for providing care for casualties of an overseas armed conflict.

What is a Disaster Medical Assistance Team?

A Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT) is composed of about 35 volunteers which include physicians, nurses, technical staff and other health professionals as well as support staff. Team members will be trained to respond to a disaster as an organized group. DMAT capability includes triage and stabilization of patients at a disaster site and provision of austere medical services at transfer points during transfer to definitive care. When teams are dispatched to the disaster site, they will bring necessary medical supplies and equipment, and also food, water and other necessary supplies.

How will patients be evacuated, received and transported to the participating NDMS hospitals? At the disaster site, patients will be stabilized by a Disaster Medical Assistance Team and/or Clearing-Staging Unit for transport. In most cases, patients will be evacuated by air. At the airport of the NDMS reception area, patients will be met by a local DMAT which will sort, assess, and match those patients to participating hospitals, according to procedures developed by local authorities and the local area’s NDMS Coordinating Center. Patients will be transported to participating hospitals using locally organized ground and helicopter transport. There are presently 107 metropolitan areas that serve as potential hosts to NDMS patients. For each NDMS area, there is a Coordinating Center , which is a Federal hospital. Amateur Radio Support Functions One or two, perhaps more, ARES members from the DMAT’s home base could be appointed as full members to the DMAT. They would be trained and be prepared to travel with the DMAT to the disaster area.

The section ARES organization and the DMAT would cooperatively develop a plan for broad-based support in the event that the team is deployed locally for an intra-state disaster. All ARES members in general could be trained to meet the needs of DMAT teams in a disaster area under the direction of DMAT member-hams. This is because ARES members located just outside of the disaster area could be called in to provide communications support as hams living in the disaster area would be preoccupied with personal situations and unable to assist. ARES organizations would need to develop a plan to support each of the 74 Federal coordinating Centers. These centers are responsible for receiving patients that have been evacuated from the disaster area and distributing them to local participating hospitals.

• Other Agencies

You may be able to assist any search and rescue groups in your area. Many of these groups rely on CB radio for communication. They may prefer Amateur Radio or use your ARES group in a supplemental communications capacity. ARES groups and REACT teams may be able to complement each other in many situations at the local level.

Your local hospitals may need back-up communications in an emergency. Some hospitals essentially lack emergency back-up communications and communications capacity between hospitals. In a large scale disaster, lateral communications (i.e., hospital to hospital, hospital to paramedic groups) is essential.

The Civil Air Patrol (CAP) is another agency you should contact. The CAP primarily assists in downed aircraft searches and other aviation-related services. In most instances they do have their own communications; however, your ARES unit may be able to assist in specialized instances.

Don’t neglect charitable agencies that sponsor walk-athons, parades or other special events. Many of these organizations would welcome reliable communications provided by your ARES group. While you’re contacting the many agencies and organizations listed, consider lateral communications. ARES groups are in an optimum position to provide agency to agency communications in a disaster. Rarely, for example, can a public works manager talk to the Red Cross administrator under routine conditions. In an emergency it may be impossible. Your well-trained ARES group can fill this void.