ARES® “Operation Ice House” Garners Superb Publicity In Local Media

Operation Ice House 2009Members of Cape Cod ARES® led by District Emergency Coordinator Frank O’Laughlin, WQ1O conducted a very successful winter emergency communications exercise on January 24, 2009. “Operation Ice House” involved efforts on the part of ARES members in several locations across the Cape and Islands, including two hospitals.

According to O’Laughlin, “the exercise was designed to practice net operations, NTS traffic handling, liaison operations, as well as tactical messaging techniques.” Voice modes as well as Winlink were utilized during the event.

The effort garnered great publicity, too: the Cape Wide News web site carried a feature article that included over a half-dozen photos of the staff and equipment.

 

Shown here: (left) Tom Wruk and Frank O’Laughlin at the Hyannis site setting up an antenna

Reminder: Monthly Eastern Massachusetts ARES Net for January 2009

Hello to all…

A reminder that the monthly ARES Net for January is rapidly approaching. The monthly ARES Net for January is Monday January 5th, 2009, at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system. This is after the RACES Nets earlier in the evening. For frequencies that will be linked into the ARES Net on the MMRA Network, please see the following link from the MMRA web site and the repeaters that will be linked in will be through Hub 1:

http://www.mmra.org/repeaters/map.html

In addition, if the Echo-IRLP node on the MMRA hub is available, we will likely link that to the New England Reflector system on IRLP 9123/Echolink Conference *NEW-ENG* Node: 9123.

Make the first Monday of the month, “Emergency Communications Night” and check into your local RACES Net and then check into the ARES Net on the MMRA Repeater System. We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net.

We will have several interesting announcements for the net that evening and we look forward to everyone’s participation. Updates will be posted via email and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES Web Site at http://ares.ema.arrl.org    

Thanks for your continued support of 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://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://www.wx1box.org

Eastern Mass ARES Standby Lifted/Merry Christmas Happy New Year, Happy Holidays to All!

Hello to all….

First of all, I would like to mention that our Eastern Massachusetts ARES Stand-by for the Ice Storm and subsequent winter storms has now ended. While the storm currently in progress, may cause strong winds and wind damage across portions of the Southeast part of the Eastern Massachusetts section, it is not expected to cause issues significant enough to require ARES support except to support SKYWARN reporting per the SKYWARN reporting criteria.

I would like to take a moment to wish everyone in RACES, ARES, SKYWARN, MARS and in EMCOMM in general a Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and Happy Holiday season. We had another year of successes in public service thanks to all of your efforts and I look forward to working with many of you again in 2009.

We completed several EMCOMM Workshops over the area including an Advanced Workshop in April in Walpole, Massachusetts, a basic workshop in Concord, Massachusetts and another basic workshop in Peabody, Massachusetts. The workshops were very successful and have continued to promote an interest in EMCOMM across the region. The Cape Cod ARES group has conducted a workshop over a course of weeknights for several weeks for CERT Teams that have recently gotten their Ham Radio licenses.

We had a very successful hurricane exercise in early August where we had voice command and tactical nets on HF, Echolink/IRLP and 2 Meter/440 voice with traffic flow between the nets bolted together using Winlink. It went extremely well and a complete report was sent to ARRL Headquarters and various state emergency management teams. It will be posted on the web by the start of the new year.

Many in ARES, RACES and MARS supported SKYWARN in an unusually active year that featured the most active summer severe weather season in years. The Ice Storm also resulted in a significant level of support for SKYWARN and for local, regional and state Emergency Management. An Amateur Radio Emergency Services Mutual Aid Team (ARESMAT) was deployed for the first time since the 9/11/01 terrorist attacks and was the largest ARESMAT deployment since those terrorist attacks.

Thanks to all of you for your support and cooperation over the course of 2008 and I look forward to working with you in 2009. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and Happy Holidays to all!!

73,Rob-KD1CY.
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator for NWS Taunton Massachusetts

UPDATED: Gardner and Worcester Operations Secure/Eastern Mass ARES Stand-By Activation Continues

Hello to all….

..Gardner Massachusetts Shelter, Hospital and EOC Operations Secured. Ice Storm Power Outage Impact Improving..

..Eastern Massachusetts ARES Stand-By Activation Continues due to Impact from Major Ice Storm Event that affected the northern part of Eastern Massachusetts North and West of Route 2 and much of Western and Central Massachusetts and concerns for additional winter storms and potential impact on weakened infrastructure have caused the stand-by activation to be extended..
..Stand-By ARES Activation has been extended through the Afternoon/Evening of Monday 12/22..

A major ice storm has caused significant damage to tree, power line and phone line infrastructure across Western and Central Massachusetts and communities in Northeast Massaschusetts along and north of Route 2. Icing of 1/2-1″ were common particularly in elevations above 500 feet with 1″ or greater icing noted in hardest hit areas. This resulted in widespread tree and power line damage. Conditions are now improving in the recovery phase of this major incident. Power Outages are now down to 45,000-50,000 among the 3 major utility companies of Massachusetts. Phone infrastructure is now largely back in place. Some shelters and states of emergency in cities and towns have been lifted but there is still a significant number of shelters open across Massachusetts as well as local states of emergency. The situation should continue to improve over the next few days though additional winter storms are expected on Friday and Sunday which could impact the situation and slow recovery or result in renewed issues. Given this potential, Eastern Massachusetts ARES stand-by activation has been extended through to the afternoon/evening of Monday 12/22.

Since the last coordination message posting, at 1232 PM Tuesday December 6th, operations from Gardner, Massachusetts have secured. On Monday 12/15, the hospital phone system was comprimsed and the only communication between the hospital and the police station was handled through Amateur Radio. This occurred for much of the day Monday but then on Monday Evening conditions rapidly improved with power restored to many areas and phone service restored to the hospital. After a Tuesday 10 AM planning meeting in the city of Gardner, shelter and EOC operations were secured and the Amateur Radio activity and ARESMAT team was secured from Gardner at 1232 PM Tuesday 12/16.

In addition to Gardner, Worcester Operations have secured with the closing of shelters and the signiificant improvement in power outages. That occurred late Monday Evening In Franklin County Massachusetts, the last check with Tom Foxwell-N1OTS from Franklin County ARES on Tuesday is that support was continuing for the town of Heath and a few other communities in the county. If a new update is obtained here, we will update this segment of the notice accordingly.

At this time, the Eastern Massachusetts ARES staff is not aware of any assistance required from an Amateur Radio perspective. New Hampshire was particularly hard hit but activations have been handled at the local level and conditions are now improving after contact with the New Hampshire ARRL/ARES leadership on Tuesday. The next update to this message will be done Thursday Evening when impact from the Friday Storm is more clear.

An article on the efforts of ARES and SKYWARN across New England has been posted on the ARRL National HQ web site. See link below:

http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2008/12/15/10506/?nc=1

What is ARES Stand-by mode?

ARES stand-by mode is to alert Amateurs within ARES that a mobilization is possible on a wide-scale and that some localized mobilizations are taking place in isolated areas. It means to take a look at your Go-Kit and have batteries and equipment ready to go and charged up and take care of any requirements at home in case a mobilization is required and you can participate. Do NOT self-deploy. Wait for guidance from leadership for any deployment. It is an honor to be ready even if you don’t deploy for the event, Hopefully, this is just another exercise of our preparedness and capabilities. If not, the ARES leadership looks forward to working with you if any wide scale mobilization is required after the impact of this major storm to the region.

Respectfully Submitted,

Robert Macedo (KD1CY)
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator 
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://www.wx1box.org
http://ares.ema.arrl.org

 

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Thanks in large part to the efforts of Phil McNamara, N1XTB, thousands of posts from previous years have been converted over onto this new site. You may find a few things missing and/or broken links over the next few days, but we’ll endeavor to fix all problems you bring to our attention.

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Reminder: Monthly Eastern Massachusetts ARES Net for December 2008

Hello to all…

A reminder that the monthly ARES Net for December is rapidly approaching. The monthly ARES Net for December is Monday December 1st, 2008, at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system. This is after the RACES Nets earlier in the evening. For frequencies that will be linked into the ARES Net on the MMRA Network, please see the following link from the MMRA web site and the repeaters that will be linked in will be through Hub 1:

http://www.mmra.org/repeaters/map.html

In addition, if the Echo-IRLP node on the MMRA hub is available, we will likely link that to the New England Reflector system on IRLP 9123/Echolink Conference *NEW-ENG* Node: 9123.

Make the first Monday of the month, “Emergency Communications Night” and check into your local RACES Net and then check into the ARES Net on the MMRA Repeater System. We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net.

We will have several interesting announcements for the net that evening and we look forward to everyone’s participation. Updates will be posted via email and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES Web Site at http://ares.ema.arrl.org

Thanks for your continued support of 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://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://www.wx1box.org
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Reminder: Monthly Eastern Massachusetts ARES Net for November 2008

Hello to all…

A reminder that the monthly ARES Net for November is rapidly approaching. The monthly ARES Net for November is Monday November 3rd, 2008, at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system. This is after the RACES Nets earlier in the evening. For frequencies that will be linked into the ARES Net on the MMRA Network, please see the following link from the MMRA web site and the repeaters that will be linked in will be through Hub 1:

http://www.mmra.org/repeaters/map.html

In addition, if the Echo-IRLP node on the MMRA hub is available, we will likely link that to the New England Reflector system on IRLP 9123/Echolink Conference *NEW-ENG* Node: 9123.

Make the first Monday of the month, “Emergency Communications Night” and check into your local RACES Net and then check into the ARES Net on the MMRA Repeater System. We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net.

We will have several interesting announcements for the net that evening and we look forward to everyone’s participation. Updates will be posted via email and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES Web Site at http://ares.ema.arrl.org

Thanks for your continued support of 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://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://www.wx1box.org
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Reminder: Monthly Eastern Massachusetts ARES Net for October 2008

Hello to all…

A reminder that the monthly ARES Net for October is rapidly approaching. The monthly ARES Net for October is Monday October 6th, 2008, at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system. This is after the RACES Nets earlier in the evening. For frequencies that will be linked into the ARES Net on the MMRA Network, please see the following link from the MMRA web site and the repeaters that will be linked in will be through Hub 1:

http://www.mmra.org/repeaters/map.html

In addition, if the Echo-IRLP node on the MMRA hub is available, we will likely link that to the New England Reflector system on IRLP 9123/Echolink Conference *NEW-ENG* Node: 9123.

Make the first Monday of the month, “Emergency Communications Night” and check into your local RACES Net and then check into the ARES Net on the MMRA Repeater System. We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net.

We will have several interesting announcements for the net that evening and we look forward to everyone’s participation. Updates will be posted via email and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES Web Site at http://ares.ema.arrl.org

Thanks for your continued support of 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://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://www.wx1box.org
1 1

RACES Frequencies and Sectors

Frequency and Sector

Area Served

146.640-Waltham: Sectors 1A and 1B

Sector 1A: Boston, MBTA, MDC

Sector 1B: Arlington, Ashland, Belmont, Brookline, Cambridge, Framingham, Holliston, Hopkinton, Marlborough, Natick, Newton, Sherborn, Sudbury, Waltham, Watertown, Wayland, Weston

146.52-Simplex: Sector 1A and 1B

Alternate frequency for Sectors 1A and 1B.

146.955-Westford: PL: 74.4: Sector 1C

Acton, Ashby, Ayer, Boxborough, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Concord, Dracut, Dunstable, Groton, Hudson, Littleton, Lowell, Maynard, Pepperell, Shirley, Stow, Townsend, Tyngsboro, Westford

147.465-Simplex

Alternate frequency for Sector 1C.

146.715-Burlington PL: 146.2: Sector 1D

Bedford, Billerica, Burlington, Everett, Lexington, Lincoln, Lynnfield, Malden, Medford, Melrose, N. Reading, Reading, Somerville, Stoneham, Tewksbury, Wakefield, Wilmington, Winchester, Woburn

146.580-Simplex

Alternate frequency for Sector 1D.

146.625-Haverhill PL: 131.8 : Sector 1E

Amesbury, Andover, Boxford, Georgetown, Groveland, Haverhill, Ipswich, Lawrence, Merrimac, Methuen, N. Andover, Newbury, Newburyport, Rowley, Salisbury, Topsfield, W. Newbury

146.550-Simplex

Alternate frequency for Sector 1E.

147.390-Beverly: Sector 1F

Beverly, Chelsea, Danvers, Essex, Gloucester, Hamilton, Lynn, Manchester, Marblehead, Middleton, Nahant, Peabody, Revere, Rockport, Salem, Saugus, Swampscott, Wenham, Winthrop

146.880-Salem PL: 118.8 Hz

Alternate frequency for Sector 1F.

Frequency and Sector

Area Served

147.000-Dartmouth PL: 67.0 Hz: Sector 2A

Acushnet, Attleboro, Berkley, Dartmouth, Dighton, Fall River, Freetown, Mansfield, Marion, Mattapoisett, New Bedford, North Attleboro, Norton, Plainville, Raynham, Rehoboth, Rochester, Seekonk, Somerset, Swansea, Taunton, Wareham, Westport.

145.39-Norwell PL: 67.0 Hz: Sector 2B

Abington, Bridgewater, Brockton, Carver, Duxbury, East Bridgewater, Easton, Halifax. Hanover, Hanson, Kingston, Lakeville, Marshfield, Middleboro, Norwell, Pembroke, Plymouth, Plympton, Rockland, Scituate, West Bridgewater, Whitman

146.955- Dennis PL: 88.5: Sector: 2C

Barnstable, Barnstable County, Bourne, Brewster, Chatham, Chilmark, Dennis, Dukes County, Eastham, Edgartown, Falmouth, Gay Head, Gosnold, Harwich, Mashpee, Nantucket, Oaks Bluff, Orleans, Provincetown, Sandwich, Tisbury, Truro, Wellfleet, West Tisbury, Yarmouth

146.865-Sharon PL: 146.2: Sector: 2D

Avon, Bellingham, Braintree, Canton, Cohasset, Dedham, Dover, Franklin, Foxboro, Hingham, Holbrook, Hull, Medfield, Medway, Millis, Milton, Needham, Norton, Norfolk, Norwood, Quincy, Randolph, Sharon, Stoughton, Walpole, Westwood, Wellesley, Wrentham, Weymouth

New Regional ARES Net Convenes On Six Meters

Jason Janvrin, WA1NH writes on the North Shore ARES discussion group:

Greetings from north of the Border.

I would invite all stations to participate in a new ‘Regional’ net on 6M. The repeater is located in Goffstown, NH on Mt Uncanoonic. The input is in Derry, NH. 53.07 output with pl of 100.0. 52.07 input with pl of 151.4.

The net will convene on Saturday, Sept 20 at 7PM. This is an attempt to establish a regional resource for possible ARES use during a disaster. I am told that the SM from NH will try to make it onto the net.

Please post this to as many ARES reflectors that are in range of the repeater. This should include all of Eastern Mass, Western Mass, Southern NH, Southern Maine, and Southern Vermont.

73,
Jason Janvrin, WA1NH
EC, East Rockingham, NHARES

Reminder: Monthly Eastern Massachusetts ARES Net for September 2008

Hello to all…

A reminder that the monthly ARES Net for September is rapidly approaching. Due to the Labor Day holiday, the Monthly ARES Net for September is on the second Monday of the month. The monthly ARES Net for September is Monday September 8th, 2008, at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system. This is after the RACES Nets earlier in the evening.

Make tonight, “Emergency Communications Night” and check into your local RACES Net and then check into the ARES Net on the MMRA Repeater System. We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net.

We will have several interesting announcements for the net that evening and we look forward to everyone’s participation. Updates will be posted via email and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES Web Site at http://ares.ema.arrl.org

Thanks for your continued support of 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://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://www.wx1box.org
1

Reminder: Monthly ARES Net for July

Hello to all…

A reminder that the monthly ARES Net for July is rapidly approaching. The monthly ARES Net for July is Monday July 7th, 2008, at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system. This is after the RACES Nets earlier in the evening.

Make the first Monday of the month, “Emergency Communications Night” and check into your local RACES Net and then check into the ARES Net on the MMRA Repeater System. We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net.

We will have several interesting announcements for the net that evening and we look forward to everyone’s participation. Updates will be posted via email and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES Web Site at http://ares.ema.arrl.org

Thanks for your continued support of ARES!
1

Reminder: Monthly ARES Net for June 2008

Hello to all…

A reminder that the monthly ARES Net for June is rapidly approaching. The monthly ARES Net for June is Monday June 2nd, 2008, at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system. This is after the RACES Nets earlier in the evening.

Make the first Monday of the month, “Emergency Communications Night” and check into your local RACES Net and then check into the ARES Net on the MMRA Repeater System. We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net.

We will have several interesting announcements for the net that evening and we look forward to everyone’s participation. Updates will be posted via email and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES Web Site at http://ares.ema.arrl.org

Thanks for your continued support of 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://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://www.wx1box.org

1

Reminder: Monthly ARES Net for May

Hello to all…

A reminder that the monthly ARES Net for May is rapidly approaching. The monthly ARES Net for May is Monday May 5th, 2008, at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system. This is after the RACES Nets earlier in the evening.

Make the first Monday of the month, “Emergency Communications Night” and check into your local RACES Net and then check into the ARES Net on the MMRA Repeater System. We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net.

We will have several interesting announcements for the net that evening and we look forward to everyone’s participation. Updates will be posted via email and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES Web Site at http://ares.ema.arrl.org

Thanks for your continued support of ARES!
1 1

MEMA Hosts Unified Command Center (UCC) for Both Marathons

Hello to all….

The following announcement came from Massachusetts State RACES Radio officer, Tom Kinhan-N1CPE from MEMA Public Information Officer, Peter Judge:

THE COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND SECURITY
_____________________________

MASSACHUSETTS EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY
400 Worcester Road Framingham, MA 01702-5399
Tel: 508-820-2000 Fax: 508-820-2030
Website: www.mass.gov/mema

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Peter Judge, MEMA PIO
April 18, 2008 (508) 820-2002

MEMA HOSTS UCC FOR BOTH MARATHONS
SEOC To Be Activated For Olympic Trials & Boston Marathon

FRAMINGHAM, MA – The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) Headquarters in Framingham will be the site of the Unified Command Center (UCC) for Sunday’s U.S. Women’s Olympic Marathon Trials and Monday’s 112th running of the Boston Marathon. The UCC, located at the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC), will be activated and fully operational on Sunday, April 20th at 7:00AM for the Olympic Trials and again on Monday at 7:00AM, remaining operational until at least 7:00PM on Monday, April 21st. This is the seventh straight year that these extensive steps have been taken to ensure the safety and security of participants and spectators along the 26.2-mile course.

The purpose of the UCC is to bring together key organizations for decision-making, communication and support. Medical issues are a key focus again this year, as demonstrated by the detailed planning of this year’s Boston Marathon Medical Subcommittee with extensive outreach to the Commonwealth’s medical community, area hospitals and private ambulance services. The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, the Boston Athletic Association Medical Team and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health helped raise medical preparedness and its coordination to an unprecedented level by again co-sponsoring the annual Boston Marathon Medical Seminar, which was held at Newton-Wellesley Hospital. Over 200 volunteer medical personnel attended this year’s event.

Over 80 individuals from the local communities involved with the Boston Marathon, as well as State and Federal Public Safety agencies, organizations and departments are expected to be represented at the SEOC on Patriots’ Day. The UCC monitors the ‘Big Picture’ and rapidly and efficiently responds to situations as they arise. The UCC, through MEMA’s WebEOC technology has the capability of displaying real time messages, weather data, maps, and logs, exchanging information to users both inside and outside the UCC. The UCC had dedicated hard-line telephones and access to 800 MHz, Public Safety radios, backup amateur radios (RACES) and numerous types of wireless communication to support the event and ensure immediate two-way communication. The Incident Command System (ICS) will again be utilized to organize and coordinate activities in the UCC and the field.

The Department of Public Health will again coordinate the use of an innovative ‘runner/patient tracking system’, utilizing barcodes on the runner’s bibs and scores of hand-held devises along the course to track everything from the location of any runner or spectator receiving medical assistance or transport to the number and severity of medical issues that are occurring along the course. The Boston Marathon offers a first ‘real-life’ event utilizing this technology that presents numerous potential benefits during a Mass Casualty Emergency.

Key liaisons in the UCC will represent Police, Fire, Emergency Medical Service and Emergency Management departments from the municipalities which host the event – Hopkinton, Ashland, Framingham, Natick, Wellesley, Newton, Brookline, and Boston. The various other agencies and organizations in the UCC, under the leadership of MEMA Director Don Boyce, include the Executive Office of Public Safety, Boston Athletic Association, MA State Police, MA National Guard, MA Department of Public Health, MA Department of Fire Services, MA Bay Transit Authority, MA Turnpike Authority, MA Highway Department, Federal Aviation Administration, Civil Air Patrol, Federal Bureau of Investigation, American Red Cross, RACES/ARES (amateur radio volunteers), local hospitals and private ambulance services.

WHAT: 2008 U.S. Women’s Olympic Marathon Trials UCC
WHEN: Sunday, April 20, 2008, 7:00AM to at least Mid-day

WHAT: 2008 Boston Marathon UCC
WHEN: Monday, April 21, 2008, 7:00AM to at least 7:00PM
WHERE: The SEOC located at MEMA Headquarters, 400 Worcester Road (Rte. 9) Framingham, MA

WHY: To ensure the safety & security of Marathon participants & spectators

The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) is the state agency responsible for coordinating federal, state, local, voluntary and private resources during emergencies and disasters in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. MEMA provides leadership to: develop plans for effective response to all hazards, disasters or threats; train emergency personnel to protect the public; provide information to the citizenry; and assist individuals, families, businesses and communities to mitigate against, prepare for, and respond to and recover from emergencies, both natural and man made. For additional information about MEMA and All Hazard Preparedness, go to www.mass.gov/mema.

-30-
1 1 1

Monthly ARES Net for April

Hello to all…

A reminder that the monthly ARES Net for April is rapidly approaching. The monthly ARES Net for April is Monday April 7th, 2008, at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system. This is after the RACES Nets earlier in the evening.

Make the first Monday of the month, “Emergency Communications Night” and check into your local RACES Net and then check into the ARES Net on the MMRA Repeater System. We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net.

We will have several interesting announcements for the net that evening and we look forward to everyone’s participation. Updates will be posted via email and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES Web Site at http://ares.ema.arrl.org

Thanks for your continued support of ARES!
1

North Shore ARES Participates in Peabody Regional Homeland Security Exercise

Hello to all….

The North Shoare ARES team led by North Shore ARES District Emergency Coordinator, Eric Horwitz, KA1NCF, and North Shore ARES Emergency Coordinator, Jim Palmer, KB1KQW, participated in a a mock exercise with Peabody Emergency Management held by the Northeast Regional Homeland Security Advisory Council. Below is a write-up of that report:

(PEABODY, MA) – Leadership officials from the North Shore Amateur Radio Emergency Service team responded today to a mock exercise being held by the Northeast Regional Homeland Security Advisory Council.

Eric Howritz-KA1NCF and Jim Palmer-KB1KQW at the North Shore ARES desk at the PEMA exercise
The exercise simulated a mock crash of a tractor trailer truck which carried and released a cloud of chlorine gas into the atmosphere prompting emergency response officials to coordinate efforts on a regional scale, in addition to simulated evacuations and shelter-in-place operations of community residents. Members of the Police and Fire Departments, Electric Light, Department of Public Works were primary responders along with numerous regional Chiefs and Officials from various other communities.

Eric Horwitz – KA1NCF, North Shore ARES District Emergency Coordinator, along with Jim Palmer – KB1KQW, North Shore ARES Emergency Coordinator staffed the Emergency Management desk at the operations center.

Meantime, Mike Griffin-KB1OHZ conducted a surprise resource call-up drill on the 145.47 NS1RA Danvers Repeater simulating an ARES activation across the area. At the ready to assist with shelter communications within an hour’s time were Nat Henricksen-NG1Z, Pete Aery – KI1P, and David Titelbaum – KB1MSR. The operations phase of the simulation kicked off at 10:00 and concluded at 13:00.

Mike Griffin-KB1OHZ doing communications during the exercise at the exercise location
Testing our skills further, the exercise ended with a working fire in the Peabody area and we were able to transition to a more realistic operational phase while the scope and extent of the fire were ascertained by the various officials on site. The fire remained small and additional resources were not required from the Emergency Management resources on location for the exercise.

The exercise was considered a great success and all parties involved were able to walk away with various information to improve the efforts at the center. Jim-KB1KQW and Eric-KA1NCF promoted Amateur Radio’s role to the various attendees by teaching that we are available when all else fails. This information was well received and we hope that these officials will spread the word about our valuable role in emergency communications and response.

Overview of all groups participating in the exercise
North Shore ARES has been continuously working on our relationship with Peabody Emergency Management, most recently activating the operations center for a recent Nor’easter on March 8th. No reports of flooding were received from that event but minor wind damage was realized later into the evening prompting an ARES/SKYWARN activation to monitor the storm. Our first activation with Peabody Emergency Management took place on Patriots Day 2007 with a significant Nor’easter which brought several episodes of urban/coastal flooding along with numerous reports of wind damage across the region. Since then we have participated in approximately 15 other activations, mostly for weather related incidents across the area.

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Reminder: Monthly Eastern Massachusetts ARES Net for March

Hello to all….

A reminder that the monthly ARES Net for March is rapidly approaching. The monthly ARES Net for March is Monday March 3rd, 2008, at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system. This is after the RACES Nets earlier in the evening.

Make the first Monday of the month, “Emergency Communications Night” and check into your local RACES Net and then check into the ARES Net on the MMRA Repeater System. We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net.

We will have several interesting announcements for the net that evening and we look forward to everyone’s participation. Updates will be posted via email and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES Web Site at http://ares.ema.arrl.org

Thanks for your continued support of 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://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://www.wx1box.org
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Reminder: Monthly Eastern Massachusetts ARES Net for February

Hello to all….

A reminder that the monthly ARES Net for February is rapidly approaching. The monthly ARES Net for February is Monday February 4th, 2008, at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system. This is after the RACES Nets earlier in the evening.

Make the first Monday of the month, “Emergency Communications Night” and check into your local RACES Net and then check into the ARES Net on the MMRA Repeater System. We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net.

We will have several interesting announcements for the net that evening and we look forward to everyone’s participation. Updates will be posted via email and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES Web Site at http://ares.ema.arrl.org

Thanks for your continued support of 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://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://www.wx1box.org
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