Department of Homeland Security Declares September National Preparedness Month

Hello to all….

The Department of Homeland Security has declared the month of September, National Preparedness Month in the United States. For us, as Amateur Radio Operators particularly those involved with ARES/RACES/SKYWARN/MARS/SATERN/Red Cross and other organizations, National Preparedness Month should strike a strong tone within our ranks. For us, we should be prepared at home for when natural or man-made disasters arise and have the necessary supplies at home so that we can survive for at least 3 days and in some cases as long as 7-10 days. We also need to be prepared for the potential of deployment for Emergency Management and NGO’s that we have worked with over the past several years. The press release on DHS National Preparedness Month and other associated information on preparedness can be seen from the following link:

http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/interapp/press_release/press_release_0988.xml

The ARRL, as an organization working with DHS on raising the awareness of preparedness, is one of many organizations involved with National Preparedness Month. The ARRL has declared Amateur Radio Awareness Day for Saturday September 16th, 2006. Below is a link to an ARRL article on DHS National Preparedness Month and ARRL Amateur Radio Awareness Day:

http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2006/09/01/1/?nc=1

As your Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator and ARES SKYWARN Coordinator for NWS Taunton, September is a very appropriate month for National Preparedness Month. While the extremely active severe weather season has waned, we are entering the peak of the Hurricane Season and while the season has not been as active as expected, there remains a threat from the Tropics in the Eastern Massachusetts section until early October, when cooler waters should then protect the region from serious impact from a land-falling hurricane.

Several items have been completed this week to increase our section’s preparedness and the details will be posted in separate announcements via the various email lists and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES web site.

Thank you for your continued support of Eastern Massachusetts ARES!

Respectfully Submitted,

Robert Macedo (KD1CY)
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator
Pager #: (508) 354-3142
Home Phone #: (508) 994-1875 (After 6 PM)
Home/Data #: (508) 997-4503 (After 6 PM)
Work Phone #: 1-800-445-2588 Ext.: 72929 (8 AM-5 PM)
Email Address: rmacedo@rcn.com
http://users.rcn.com/rmacedo
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