Starfish Community

Philippines Amateur Radio Association reports they have activated an Emergency Communciations net on 7045Khz LSB. Currently, I am unable to hear communications on that frequency but will monitor throughout the disaster. These operators are likely operating on very low power and simple wire antennas to accommodate communications within the affected area. In the meantime, I am monitoring shortwave seeking any information that may be new and useful for us.

I will be keeping my eye out for any activity regarding Indonesia Sumatra Earthquake and any emergency nets either shortwave or amateur radio.

Will this method of communicating be a viable method during an emergency or will the average HAM user not be able to access the Network?

Steve --

There are a number of different situations where amateur radio would be viable; however, there are others where it isn't viable. For example, for us in Texas trying to monitor a group of guys running low power in the Philippines and trying to get information isn't going to work very well. However, if there was another hurricane in the gulf coast or other domestic disaster or a disaster in South America we could likely play a vital role as a relay station. Depending on band conditions we could provide a vital communications role or get information from various areas.

I think the key is building connections among other organizations who are using amateur radio and working closely with those organizations as we continue on.