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RACESBUL.124 DATE: July 2, 1990
SUBJECT: RACES I.D. CARDS
A recent published report on a disaster echoed long standing
problems in some areas. "Lack of credentials." "Police and fire
personnel at the crash site often had no idea what an ARES or
RACES identification signified." "Hams should have some sort of
national identification card."
This is not a problem in those jurisdictions around the
country where the following premises are accepted and steps
taken:
A RACES unit is part of a specific local government.
When a RACES person is on duty they are an unpaid employee of
that one government. (Note: NOT multiple governments!). Since a
RACES person is a member of that government when/while on duty,
they are issued that government's identification card. They may
also be required to wear whatever outer garments, headgear, and
or observe other dress code requirements of their government.
In short, they look and act as if they are employees and belong.
All RACES duty is performed under the direction of competent
authority. RACES personnel do not "self dispatch" unless they
are specifically covered by written orders.
The suggestion for a "statewide identification card"
surfaces regularly in California. The reason this is not
practical is that it would simply be unmanageable -- thousands of
identical cards requiring preparation, recording, renewals, etc.
It would simply resurrect the generic national 1950 civil defense
card; OK for card collectors but useless at the roadblock. We
recommend government ID cards, issued only after a satisfactory
six month probation period, and good for three years.
Specifically NOT recommended is any insignia on cards and
outer garments that is not universally recognized and accepted
within the community in which the volunteer serves. In the
majority of the country today this includes the old RACES logo,
civil defense insignia, association and club logos. We welcome
your questions by return packet if we may help you in any way in
this regard. ---KH6GBX
RACESBUL.125 DATE: July 9, 1990
SUBJECT: RADIO OFFICER P.D. - 1/9
If it's worth doing right, write it up.
Local governments and hams frequently ask what a RACES Radio
Officer is supposed to do. The series of Bulletins that follow
will address this subject. Variations of this job description
have been used by civil defense and emergency management agencies
for over thirty years.
In some jurisdictions the Radio Officer coordinates only the
Amateur Radio operators for the agency. In others, the Radio
Officer coordinates all of the communications volunteers in
government service (COMVIGS) such as the hams, Civil Air Patrol,
Military Affiliate Radio System (MARS), and citizen banders.
In most cases the Radio Officer is a volunteer and reports to a
paid staff person. The latter is usually the communications
officer or agency director.
Too often, an agency doesn't have a clear understanding of
what a Radio Officer could or should do. This can lead to the
"Don't call us, we'll call you" syndrome or, worse, the
undirected "loose cannon". Neither situation, of course, does
justice to the volunteers. That is why written job descriptions
help both the agency and its volunteers.
The Radio Officer is expected to personally accomplish all the
tasks described in the position description. The Radio Officer
should be a good manager who delegates tasks and assures that the
objectives are met. A County Radio Officer is featured in this
series. It may be applied to municipal and state governments
with obvious and appropriate modifications.
In all cases the government is the appointing authority of
Radio Officers. Position or job descriptions help both paid and
volunteer staff to better understand the who, what, why, when,
and where of being a Radio Officer. A printed copy of the
position description for either a City Radio Officer or County
Radio Officer is available for a Self Addressed Stamped Envelope.
(To be continued. ---KH6GBX)
RACESBUL.126 DATE: July 16, 1990
SUBJECT: RADIO OFFICER P.D. - 2/9
POSITION TITLE: County RACES Radio Officer
REPORTING ORGANIZATION: County Government
IMMEDIATE MANAGER: (as specified)
BROAD FUNCTION: Coordinates all RACES activity within a county
jurisdiction. Serves as the county's principal point of contact
for all matters relating to Amateur Radio.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Maintain a valid Amateur Radio license.
- Be cognizant of FCC rules and regulations as they relate to
Amateur Radio activity.
- Develop and maintain a state approved county RACES plan.
Review and approve city RACES plans.
- Promote the RACES program through participation in meetings,
public appearances, conferences and other appropriate
communications media.
- Coordinate efforts to recruit and train personnel for the RACES
program.
- Insure that all communications volunteers serving the
jurisdiction are registered Disaster Service Workers in
accordance with the requirements of the California Government
Code and guidelines of the State Office of Emergency Services.
- Supervise appropriate Amateur personnel as required to satisfy
directed mission requirements.
- Coordinate RACES mutual aid within the county and with OES
Region and adjacent counties.
- Maintain close working relationships with the Amateur Radio
Emergency Service, public safety communications organizations,
the Civil Air Patrol, Military Affiliate Radio System, Red
Cross and other volunteer and government communications
agencies.
- Insure that RACES activity reports and recommendations are
reduced to written form and distributed through appropriate
channels.
- Provide other assistance in support of the RACES program as may
be directed by responsible authority. (To be continued)
RACESBUL.127 DATE: July 23, 1990
SUBJECT: RADIO OFFICER P.D. - 3/9
POSITION DESCRIPTION
RACES RADIO OFFICER
(RADIO AMATEUR CIVIL EMERGENCY SERVICE)
1.0 POSITION
This position description is for the RACES (Radio Amateur
Civil
Emergency Service) Radio Officer for the County of _____________.
The terms RACES Officer and Radio Officer are commonly used and
are interchangeable.
The Radio Officer reports to the coordinator of emergency
services for the county.
The Radio Officer is appointed by and serves at the pleasure
of
the OES Coordinator and is this agency's principal point of
contact in all matters relating to the Amateur Radio Service.
The Radio Officer shall appoint necessary staff, including
assistants to serve during the Radio Officer's absence.
2.0 SCOPE
2.1 RACES personnel are unpaid volunteers assigned to the
_____(County office of emergency services or as specified)______.
2.2 RACES personnel provide radiocommunications where and when
required by or through the (name of office here).
2.3 RACES personnel may be used to install, modify, remove, or
operate Amateur Radio communications equipment of their own or
others.
3.0 RESPONSIBILITIES
This position is responsible for:
3.1 the supervision of all Amateur radio personnel permanently
assigned to or temporarily serving at or for the (name of county
Office of Emergency Services); (To be continued)
RACESBUL.128 DATE: July 30, 1990
SUBJECT: RADIO OFFICER P.D. - 4/9
3.2 the recruiting and training of such personnel;
3.3 furthering the goals and mission of the RACES through
meetings, public appearances, conferences, training, written and
radio communications;
3.4 scheduling Amateur radio operators and technicians to meet
mission requirements;
3.5 serving as the liaison between this office and the American
Radio Relay League (ARRL), Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES,
an activity sponsored by the ARRL), Amateur radio organizations
and individuals, other local government telecommunications
personnel, and the State OES Region RACES
Coordinator/Communications Coordinator and Region Radio Officer;
3.6 providing a periodic RACES net to disseminate information
and guidance in a timely manner;
3.7 maintaining a list of current list of RACES personnel;
3.8 planning exercises, drills and meetings to maintain
proficiency and interest;
3.9 keeping the RACES Plan and attachments current;
3.10 recommending program policy and direction to the (title of
director or coordinator); and
3.11 assuring that the weekly State RACES BULLETINS are delivered
to the [name of the county or city emergency services office]
Coordinator;
3.12 other related duties as may be required.
4.0 MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
4.1 A current Amateur Radio license issued by the Federal
Communications Commission higher than Novice. (To be continued)
RACESBUL.129 DATE: Aug 6, 1990
SUBJECT: RADIO OFFICER P.D. - 5/9
4.2 A full understanding of the RACES program and the FCC Rules
and Regulations governing Amateur Radio.
4.3 Adequate time and interest to perform the duties with
enthusiasm. Ability to carry out the duties in a professional
manner that reflects favorably on the office at all times.
4.4 The incumbent shall not be enrolled in the Amateur Radio
Service activity of any other local government.
* * * * *
DUTIES OF A COUNTY RADIO OFFICER
No single individual can or should do the following tasks alone.
It requires a staff of competent and dedicated assistants to
share the workload and to provide round-the-clock shift
management during major incidents. The governmental jurisdiction
appoints the Radio Officer. The Radio Officer, in turn, appoints
Assistant Radio Officers and staff.
Typical RACES program management duties and responsibilities of
the jurisdiction and its RACES staff include:
1.0 PLANNING
1.1 PRIORITY: Complete (or update if more than 2 years old) a
County RACES Plan in accordance with the new "Santa Luisa County
RACES Plan" model format.
1.2 City RACES Resources. Encourage city radio officers (if
any) to maintain a resource file of specialized resources
applicable to RACES mutual aid; i.e., portable packet terminals,
ATV, portable/mobile HF-SSB radios, portable VHF/UHF-FM
repeaters, portable packet digipeaters, and strike teams. The
County Radio Officer should have a good idea where such resources
are available. (To be continued)
RACESBUL.130 DATE: Aug 13, 1990
SUBJECT: RADIO OFFICER P.D. - 6/9
1.3 RACES Plan survey:
1. Obtain a copy of each city RACES Plan.
2. List all cities by plan (Yes or No?) and the date it
was last updated.
3. Concentrate effort on preparing plans where none exist;
request and assist jurisdictions to update any plan
over 2 years old.
2.0 OPERATIONS
2.1 Staff and operate the County RACES facilities for training
nets and during actual incidents and exercises. Train shift
supervisors and operators to maintain 24-hour operations.
2.2 Respond RACES resources to field incidents, as authorized,
to support operations. Develop voice, data (packet), television
(ATV), CW and other modes to support the mission. The success of
the RACES is based upon frequent callouts to provide service;
whether it be only one, a few or all of the RACES unit. Whether
or not the RACES involvement is critical to the success of a
given incident should be a secondary consideration; the
opportunity to train and exercise the resource is primary.
2.3 Training
1. Job orientation. The RACES personnel should receive
orientation on its government's policies and procedures,
departmental mission and organization, communications systems,
Incident Command System, communication standard operating
procedures and other subjects the office may deem necessary.
2. Exercises and drills may be any activity requiring or
requesting Amateur Radio participation that is approved by the
jurisdiction.
3.0 STAFFING
3.1 The Radio Officer is appointed by and serves at the pleasure
of the jurisdiction. (To be continued)
RACESBUL.131 DATE: Aug 20, 1990
SUBJECT: RADIO OFFICER P.D. - 7/9
3.2 Recruit and assign assistants, some or all of whom will be
capable of serving as your alternate in your absence. Delegate
duties and workload without losing responsibility. Provide
written job descriptions; assistance is available from State OES
Headquarters. Some management areas to be considered are
training, operations, plans, technical services, administration
(records, personnel, etc.), MARS liaison, CAP liaison, and CB or
REACT liaison.
3.3 Radio Officer Roster. Compile and maintain a list of your
staff and all city and adjacent county Radio Officers, their home
and work telephone numbers, pagers (if any), and alternate means
of contact or alerting (via Sheriff's dispatch, etc.) You and
your assistants (alternates) should carry this with you at all
times.
3.4 City RACES Rosters. Request that all city radio officers
provide you a roster of their RACES personnel every quarter.
[Note. We do not generally recommend the creation of new city
RACES organizations for reasons outlined in an earlier RACES
management position paper available from the State RACES
Coordinator.]
4.0 DIRECTION
4.1 The Radio Officer directs the County RACES and other
volunteer communications staff assigned to County OES.
4.2 The Radio Officer reports to the position designated by the
OES Coordinator. In most counties it is the emergency services
coordinator. In others it may be the sheriff, fire chief, the
county communications officer/coordinator/director, or other
position specified and authorized by the OES coordinator.
4.3 Training. On-going, but not burdensome, training is
essential for all volunteers and professionals. Since RACES
section personnel are volunteer employees of the county, it is
reasonable to expect them to be briefed in such matters as ICS,
county government organization (names and titles, broad
responsibilities), speakers from other agencies, training
available from CSTI, expected conduct and deportment, familiarity
with county radio systems and codes (if any), OES programs and
how they fit into the "big picture", a clear understanding of
when they are authorized to be on duty, proper clothing and
equipment, proper and improper use of the ID card, etc.
(To be continued)
RACESBUL.132 DATE: Aug 27, 1990
SUBJECT: RADIO OFFICER P.D. - 8/9
5.0 COORDINATION
5.1 RACES. The Radio Officer coordinates with the State Region
OES Radio Officer, city radio officers within the county, and
adjacent county (and sometimes city) radio officers.
5.2 ARES (Amateur Radio Emergency Service). Maintain liaison
and coordination with ARRL Emergency Coordinators to
(a) encourage all ARES members to become enrolled in a RACES
(State, county or a city) unit and (b) to request support of
ARES if all timely RACES resources are exhausted. RACES
managers are reminded that unregistered Disaster Service
Worker volunteers must first sign up on the OES Form 99 for
temporary coverage during the particular incident and that there
is often no provision to do so; hence offers from such
unregistered volunteers may be declined under those
circumstances.
This is why it is so important that Amateurs to satisfactorily
complete the RACES enrollment requirements in advance.
5.3 Meetings and coordination with city Radio Officers and/or
their assistants; attend RACES meetings within their own and
adjoining jurisdictions to maintain a close working relationship
for assistance and mutual aid.
5.4 County Radio Officer and staff meet on a periodic basis to
exchange information, receive training and guidance from County
OES staff and to maintain close working relationships. It is
strongly recommended that the RACES staffs from any cities, and
the adjacent county radio officers, be included. (To be
continued)
RACESBUL.133 DATE: Sep 3, 1990
SUBJECT: RADIO OFFICER P.D. - 9/9
5.5 Speak at Amateur Radio club meetings and civic groups to
describe and promote the RACES program.
5.6 Internal Communications. County Radio Officers prepare
periodic mailings, as required, to all county RACES members and
city radio officers to provide continuity, maintain interest,
share information, and to demonstrate concern for the RACES
program on behalf of the county OES staff. The county Radio
Officer demonstrates a leadership role at every opportunity in a
tactful and proactive manner.
5.7 Mutual Aid. Establish and oversee RACES mutual aid
procedures within your county, between cities within your
county, and between you and adjoining counties. Assure that all
know how to properly use the OES communications resource
order form.
6.0 REPORTS
6.1 Radio Officer will submit periodic written reports to their
supervisor as may be required.
6.2 Records. Radio Officers maintain a file for every city
RACES within their county. Each file contains the RACES Plan,
reports, resources, correspondence and other significant records.
All files will be turned over intact to any successor.
7.0 BUDGETING
7.1 Submit budget requests for review within the office to
update and replace communications equipment, supplies, service
and travel to support the county RACES program.
* * * * *
RACESBUL.134 DATE: Sep 10, 1990
SUBJECT: REPORT: FEMA REGION 8 ARES/RACES WORKSHOP IN OREGON - 1/3
At the recent Northwest Emergency Amateur Radio workshop
sponsored by the State of Oregon and the Federal Emergency
Management Agency, Dr. J. Michael Dunlap, W7MYU, Amateur Radio
Coordinator, Oregon State Emergency Communications Center,
presented "Getting Emergency Managers and Amateur Radio Operators
Together." Dunlap said:
"Why does and should the Amateur Radio Service compliment the
public safety radio services? Because Amateur Radio is a flexible
radio service with extremely high resiliency capable of bouncing
back very quickly.
"Oregon has merged ARES and RACES as one. We see that RACES
can be executed at the state or local level. RACES management,
however, is not by vote or consensus; it is similar to corporate
management.
"The State EOC will soon have an ARES bulletin board (BBS). It
will include all of the Emergency Management Division (EMD)
public information bulletins for any county or individual to pick
up."
He described a callsign problem when they change operators.
This problem was created when the FCC did away with the unique
RACES station callsigns. A participant suggested that an EOC or
agency use an available club station callsign or a tactical
callsign all of the time; in the latter, on voice or data, the
operator uses a tactical call and signs with his own call
to meet the FCC requirements.
Dunlap described how the State checks into a lot of different
radio nets to let them know they are there.
"Professional operators can and must gain access to your EOC
if that is where they are assigned. We require that they be a
Technician Class licensee or higher. Our State RACES operators
are trained and may be pulled to operate a non-ham radio channel
if necessary. The State RACES role is to provide communications
support to the State wherever and whenever needed.
"We support the philosophy that the main goal of the RACES
(anywhere) is to provide tactical support communications -- not
health and welfare messages. To get a good Radio Officer, look
for a successful manager. The staff you recruit will often be
used as managers of all the previously non-aligned volunteers
that will come out of the woodwork in a disaster. Your volunteer
key staff cannot have divided loyalties; if you need them they
must not beg off because of some other volunteer commitment.
(To be continued)
RACESBUL.135 DATE: Sep. 17, 1990
SUBJECT: OREGON ARES/RACES - Part 2/3
Dr. Dunlap continued:
"Characteristics to look for in Amateur Radio operators: Try
to recruit as many as you can within walking distance of the EOC;
it may be the only way they can get to to work. Look for
flexibility. Cool head. Appropriate class of radio license. They
must be capable of listening for eight hours and saying nothing.
Ability to take orders. Precision is absolutely essential. Skill
and experience in message handling; all messages must be written
or printed before being sent and after they have been received.
Recruit people whose type of work allows them to take time off
for emergencies and meetings.
"Exercise and drill your hams -- the more the better! When a
local jurisdiction has a drill, some State RACES operators should
be on duty at the State headquarters, too, to drill with them. It
is really appreciated by the locals who had to turn out for their
drill, particularly on a working day.
"Amateurs must have access to their EOC. Access equals
functionality. Nothing kills a program faster than denying access
to your volunteers. Paid staff may be eight to five but not the
volunteers. Ninety-five percent of their work is done after hours.
Encourage your hams to come in and use the equipment at any hour.
Just because someone is a ham radio operator doesn't mean they
can sit down and operate all ham radio equipment -- far from it.
All the emergency communications centers should be staffed 24
hours a day during each annual ARRL Field Day.
"Provide as much training as your budgets will permit.
"Have your Amateur Radio operators install and maintain the
(RACES) equipment and antennas at the emergency communications
centers."
In the question and answer period that followed Dunlap fielded
questions on what kind of message forms should be used (ARRL if
not prescribed by the agency); and how to deal with counties that
refuse to use hams.
(To be continued)
RACESBUL.136 DATE: Sep. 24, 1990
SUBJECT: OREGON ARES/RACES - Part 3/3
Fred Molesworth, Volunteer Packet Coordinator, Oregon State
Emergency Communications Center, gave a report on the growth and
plans of their statewide Amateur Radio packet system; "Organizing
Packet Networks - The TOPS Story".
"TOPS - The Oregon Packet Society - is about six months old
now. It includes almost all the node operators, the BBS sysops,
the traffic handlers, and the ARES group. Four of the eight TOPS
directors are from the ARES. No one will stress the packet system
more than the ARES and RACES; that is what exercises are good for
-- to drive design improvements.
"We have learned that keyboard to keyboard doesn't cut it when
we installed a BBS at the Oregon State EOC. Our autoprint is
always turned on so that any person at the State EOC can receive
a message at any time.
"We're going to set up district bulletin boards (store and
forward mailboxes) to use auto routing capabilities without undue
loading problems. Our goal is to have a BBS in every (36) county
EOC with a 24-hour dedicated BBS. We can setup the forwarding
times to anything we want -- not once an hour as in normal packet
networks. We want to go between any two counties or the State EOC
in a matter of minutes.
"There are about one thousand active packet radio users in the
state of Oregon."
Question and answer period followed:
- How do you train those who setup county EOC bulletin boards?
"We (State volunteers) go to the counties and provide them the
training. In this way they all get the same training and learn
the same do's and don'ts."
- How are these ARES BBS's different from regular Amateur
Radio bulletin boards? "We do not carry any 4SALE, AMSAT, ALLUS
and similar messages."
There were over 80 Amateur Radio and CAP emergency communications
and emergency management leaders invited to this workshop from
Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Alaska. The conference was judged
a complete success and long overdue.
RACESBUL.137 DATE: Oct. 1, 1990
SUBJECT: SOME GOVERNMENTS WON'T USE VOLUNTEERS - Part 1/2
Here are some recent questions and answers at a multi-state
ARES/RACES conference:
Q: "Our county government won't even talk to us. How can we
make them set-up a RACES program?"
A: This is always a sticky issue with no single or simple
answer. Here are some answers I have picked up around the country:
1. Too often a ham group has approached a local government,
"Here is what WE are going to do for YOU." They may also infer
that it will be done on their terms. They don't ask, "What can we
volunteers do for you?" This is a sure way to turn a government
off to volunteers. (Of course it helps to have done some
local government homework so that you can have some professional
suggestions based on local conditions -- not generalities based
on distant suggestions or fill-in-the-blanks agreements.)
2. Headstrong or inflexible volunteer leadership may feel
their perceived authority threatened if they feel they must
answer to and be responsive to a higher local authority. This can
preclude the coming together between the volunteers and the
government in the first place, or it can kill a new, trial
program early on. The "us and them" syndrome has split apart more
governments from their volunteers than anything else.
3. Government leadership is just as often at fault in this
regard by saying, in effect, "I don't have time to fool around
with the volunteers (or, I don't know how) and I don't want a
volunteer on my staff. If I need those hams I just call in such-
and-such group." Do you do that regularly? "No, because they
don't know how we do things around here." Do you give them any
training? "No, don't have time." Lip service.
4. A government official may say, in effect, that "We just
spent 2 million dollars for a brand new professional two-way
radio system with all the bells and whistles. What do we need you
amateurs for?" Regrettably, that official is unaware that in a
major emergency there will NEVER be enough radio communication
circuits to support their needs for an unknown period of time.
(To be continued)
RACESBUL.138 DATE: Oct. 8, 1990
SUBJECT: SOME GOVERNMENTS WON'T USE VOLUNTEERS - Part 2/2
5. A disaster management official had a run in with a tipsy
ham volunteer. Ergo, all hams must be tipsy and obstreperous,
right? Even though that official changed governments, the
official has resisted all efforts to be provided Amateur
management personnel that are above reproach. In cases like this
where ANY Amateur Radio service program within the government is
rejected, the alternatives are limited:
a. Bring political pressure to bear from supportive higher
authority within the same government. This has its obvious after
action pitfalls -- unless you can find another department within
the same government that wants and is willing to administer a
RACES type program for the unwilling civil defense director. This
is perfectly legal (FCC) since the CD director will or has
delegated this CD function to one of the line departments. The CD
director (or by whatever local title) may not be aware that he or
she can do this. The official may be tickled to delegate the
"unknown world of Amateur Radio" to another official! This has
worked successfully in hundreds of jurisdictions.
b. Do nothing other than to wait for the responsible official
to retire, be promoted, be transferred or be otherwise replaced.
6. "If I have to use Amateurs it will make me look bad."
7. "I don't have the time." Either the role of the trusted
volunteer called a Radio Officer hasn't been accepted or, if it
has, the concept is rejected. Try the suggestion to delegate the
ham radio communications program to another department; see 5a
above.
Q: "Can't the state bring pressure to bear to make this county
have a RACES program?"
A: No, not in most states. In our state the State can provide
guidance and recommendations but it cannot tell the counties what
to do, nor can we invite ourselves in to make suggestions. The
county governments can invite the State to attend informational
meetings with them and the hams or present a one-day RACES
seminar. The local hams often make this possible by persuading
the county CD agency to conduct such an information meeting or
seminar. Salesmanship is the operative word. No local government
HAS to have an Amateur Radio program; we simply show them why it
is to their distinct advantage to have one. ---KH6GBX
RACESBUL.139 DATE: Oct. 15, 1990
SUBJECT: MANAGEMENT PRIORITIES
The following management priorities have been put forth by COL
Ernie Pearson, commander of the California Wing Civil Air Patrol.
These are goals worthy of any government, organization, and its
volunteers:
RESPECT THE INDIVIDUAL / APPRECIATE EACH OTHERS CONTRIBUTION /
BELIEVE IN PEOPLE / HELP OTHERS SUCCEED / PROMOTE A SENSE OF
ACHIEVEMENT / GROW IN SELF-ESTEEM / PRACTICE INTEGRITY / MAINTAIN
OPEN COMMUNICATION / RESERVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE MISTAKES /
PRACTICE PARTICIPATIVE MANAGEMENT.
Characteristics of a good meeting: SPECIFIC OBJECTIVE / LEADER
HAS A PREPARED AGENDA / A SPECIFIC START TIME AND DURATION / ALL
ATTENDEES ARRIVE ON TIME AND ARE WELL PREPARED / LEADER HAS
CONTROL AT ALL TIMES / MEETING OUTCOME IS CLEAR / ESTABLISHED DUE
DATES / MEETING MINUTES ARE ISSUED PROMPTLY AND IN WRITING /
DECISIONS AND TASKING ARE UNDERSTOOD BY ALL ATTENDEES.
RACESBUL.140 DATE: Oct. 22, 1990
SUBJECT: RACES BULLETIN INDEX - Part 1/2
The RACES BULLETINS are written by and for people in the RACES
(Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service and the ARES (Amateur
Radio Emergency Service). They are available to individuals and
organizations via:
1. The Amateur Radio packet radio bulletin board service
throughout the United States, Canada, and Pacific rim countries.
2. First class mail. Camera ready. Four at a time in your
business size SASE. Starts upon receipt of your SASE supply.
Expiration reminder inserted when last SASE envelope is used.
The published Bulletins frequently contain additional
information, articles, diagrams or cartoons not available to the
packet radio or diskette versions.
3. All the BULLETINS from 1985 forward are available to you on
your one IBM formatted 3 or 5 inch diskette, in ASCII.
Direct all mail to RACES BULLETINS Dept. PKT, State OES, 2800
Meadowview Drive, Sacramento, CA 95832.
The BULLETINS are intended for all emergency management
offices and their communications volunteers in government
service. The latter is anyone who provides (or may be interested
in providing) a state or a local government such service, as an
enrolled volunteer member of that government, and serves in a
manner prescribed by that government.
As suggested by the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) in
1988, the BULLETINS went into national distribution via the
Amateur Radio linked packet radio bulletin board system. They are
also carried by the CAP and MARS packet radio networks.
(To be continued)
RACESBUL.141 DATE: Oct. 29, 1990
SUBJECT: RACES BULLETIN INDEX - Part 2/11
The RACES BULLETINS are addressed to the emergency management
officials for delivery by their Amateur Radio operators. This
strengthens the communications and bond between the professional
staff and their volunteer communicators in government service.
The delivery of and discussions with the paid staff by their
volunteers delivering these BULLETINS provides a regular and
beneficial contact. Volunteers must remember that "Out of sight
is out of mind." The majority of the BULLETINS are written for
the benefit of the non-ham paid staff with whom the volunteers
work.
If you or your agency ever have a question please write or
packet a message to us. They become the basis for all BULLETINS.
They are written or suggested by people across the nation and
Canada. If it is a lengthy topic we will section it into two or
more consecutive weekly BULLETINS.
The BULLETINS are then read over the air of many ARES, RACES
and other Amateur Radio nets. They also appear in some Civil Air
Patrol and MARS PBBS.
Important note: The remainder of the RACES Bulletin INDEX
series will NOT, repeat NOT, be in a consecutive series via
packet. Regular bulletins may be interspersed between Part 2
and Part 3 and so forth. A printed index is available for a SASE.
WILLIAM MUSLADIN, N6BTJ STANLY HARTER, KH6GBX
Chief State RACES Radio Officer State RACES Coordinator
RACESBUL.142 DATE: Nov. 5, 1990
SUBJECT: OPERATIONS CRITIQUE FOR TRAINING PURPOSES - Part 1/2
A recent incident utilized about 40 Amateur Radio operators for
over a week. Observations were collected from staff and
participants following the incident. Both served agency managers
and their volunteers may benefit from the findings in your future
training, meetings, and in the preparation of standard operating
procedures.
1. Proper clothing is necessary for an extended stay. This means
appropriate attire for both day and night. Since this was a
wildfire incident, this means boots or heavy duty work shoes. Not
sneakers and never thongs.
2. Use tactical calls. This is still the hardest thing for
Amateurs unfamiliar with tactical emergency communications. It
must be stressed in training and Standard Operating Procedures so
that it will be natural in an incident or even scheduled nets and
rollcalls. Short place names are usually used to identify
locations. Functional names may be used for individual positions.
Note again that it is the position that is important and not so
much the individual holding down that position at any given time.
If a callsign is not known, don't hesitate to call anyone on any
radio by their given name. An individual's regular callsign is
really unimportant during an incident and that includes Amateur's,
too. When one location calls another location it is to establish
two way radio communications by using tactical callsigns readily
understood by anyone for the duration of the incident or net.
Again, that net might last 30 minutes or 30 days. The FCC Rules
for the Amateur Radio Service state that an Amateur Radio
STATION shall be identified with its ham call at least once in
every ten minutes of transmission. We have seen an awful lot of
time wasted in real operations and exercises when a ham, wanting
to talk to ANYONE at a given location wastes a lot of air time by
repeatedly calling an individual's ham callsign instead of the
proper tactical callsign. Ham radio operators will come and go
but the tactical callsign will remain unchanged. The tactical
callsigns are all important, the individual ham callsigns are
not. We are told that this wounds a few egos but that is simply
the way Incident Command System communications are conducted. Our
hams bring their expertise, equipment, and willingness to serve the
served agency in the manner the served agency wants and should leave
their egos home. (To be continued in Part 2.)
SUBJECT: OPERATIONS CRITIQUE - Part 2/2
3. Closely coupled with the comments in part 2 above is the fact
some volunteers report for duty with little or no prior training
in the what and why they are there. Sometimes volunteers pick up
all the necessary training in the several days of real duty and
they really shine. There are a few, however, who challenge the
very mission of the Amateur Radio operators to be there in the
first place. Those few, for example, have questioned why they
support the fire information officer's role on a wildfire
incident. To ask such a question, of course, is indicative of no
prior training being received by that person. This bulletin will
not attempt to define that role but it will be addressed in
future bulletins for information purposes only -- not an attempt
to replace the classroom training that is required of any
volunteer serving in the RACES and the Department of Forestry's
programs. Once a volunteer understands his or her expected role
-- up front and ahead of time -- they can decide whether to roll
with the team or head for the door. As program managers it is our
role to provide sufficient briefings and training so that any
volunteer can determine before an incident whether or not
tactical government service communications is their cup of tea.
Out on the line is too late.
4. Determine in advance who can read maps and who cannot. Some
people simply cannot. This is no disgrace. One who cannot read
maps, however, should not be sent into a strange area alone.
These critique comments were collected by Stan Harter KH6GBX, Les
Ballinger WA6EQQ, and Charlie Jakobs KC6LKC.
RACESBUL.144 DATE: Nov. 19, 1990
SUBJECT: RACES BULLETIN INDEX - PART 3
1985 STATE RACES BULLETIN INDEX
Those messages that referred to dated announcements of meetings
or events no longer of interest have been removed. A copy of any
message (or a complete set) is available to any governmental
jurisdiction at no cost. Copies are available to individuals,
four at a time, in return for an SASE; complete sets for $5 check
payable to STATE OF CALIFORNIA to cover postage and reproduction.
Call or write for details. They are also available at no cost by
providing us one 3" 720K diskette or two 5" floppys.
RACESBUL. Title
85-1 Lack of communications creates misunderstandings
85-2 State RACES Net. 30 Meter band added to RACES. Volun-
teers must be registered Disaster Service Workers.
85-3 Surplus equipment available.
85-4 Amateur TV demonstrated.
85-5 Frequency barriers between ARES and RACES are gone
85-6 The RACES Plan. Many are out of date.
85-7 RACES Coordinator's travel plans.
85-9 Technical: Portable Radio Batteries
85-10 Request to read Bulletins on VHF/UHF radio nets.
85-12 Ojai forest fire and other news.
85-13 San Jose World Police & Fire games; State OES
recruiting.
85-14 Questions and answers.
85-15 RACES cannot be used for only one department.
85-16 Do federal agencies have RACES?
85-17 Does the RACES provide equipment to radio Amateurs?
85-18 State OES recruiting hams for Sacramento, L.A.,
Pleasant Hill, and Redding.
86-20 Amateur Radio is major topic at National APCO conference
86-21 The Emergency Broadcast System and Amateur Radio
86-22 RACES seminar to be held in Mariposa
86-23 Surplus property available
85-25 Antenna restrictions and FCC's PRB-1
85-26 Storm Preparedness/Flood Awareness Week
85-27 FCC Form 610
85-28 Mexican earthquake briefing by Richard Andrews
85-29 Rainfall report to date
85-30 Packet radio is operational at State OES HQ 12/2/85
85-31 FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency)
85-32 Mexico City earthquake
(To be continued)
RACESBUL.145 DATE: Nov. 26, 1990
SUBJECT: RACES BULLETIN INDEX - PART 4
1 9 8 6
Number Title
86-1 Antenna Safety
86-2 Packet radio. Siskiyou County RACES/ARES meeting.
86-3 Technical: Underwriters Labs over/under voltage device
86-4 Definition of "RACES"
86-5 Weekly State RACES Net
86-6 Uses for the RACES - Part 1
86-7 Uses for the RACES - Part 2
86-8 Critique (of an earthquake exercise using hams)
86-9 Floods
86-9X Floods
86-10 CB Linear Crackdown
86-11 Kern County RACES
86-13 Who activates the RACES?
86-14 One-hour exercise question
86-15 El Dorado County RACES
86-16 Portable repeaters
86-17 Radio Officers
86-18 Family Care
86-19 HF Radio is Very Important
86-20 Yes, Non-Hams Can Join Too!
86-21 Earthquake Alarms - Part 1/2
86-22 Earthquake Alarms - Part 2/2
86-23 Rubber Duck Antennas - Part 1/3
(To be continued)
RACESBUL.146 DATE: Dec. 3, 1990
SUBJECT: COMM RESOURCES ORDER FORM - PART 1/2
To assure that any volunteer on a mutual aid mission is properly
covered with insurance and instructions, we use a written form.
This protects the volunteer portal to portal, not just while he
or she is at the incident. People can and do get hurt en route or
returning home. This is why it is mandatory in California and
other states that volunteers be preregistered disaster service
workers. We call it the "Communications Resources and Personnel
Order" form and encourage its use by any state and local
government wherein mutual aid is practiced.
We cannot reproduce the form in its actual size in this bulletin
but we show all of the line items.
Since we adopted this form in 1987, all of our RACES personnel
responding to incident assignments report total acceptance by
road block law enforcement personnel. Several public safety
agencies are impressed and wish that all responders had such
paperwork. Such things as badges, identification cards, jackets,
caps, or other paraphernalia with logos or alphabet soup seldom
carry much weight at roadblocks on large scale incidents.
The form items will be in Part 2/2 of this bulletin.
RACESBUL.147 DATE: Dec. 10, 1990
SUBJECT: COMM RESOURCES ORDER FORM - PART 2/2
COMMUNICATIONS RESOURCES AND PERSONNEL ORDER
[NAME OF GOVERNMENT]
1. Date/Time 2A. Other's Order number [This may be from
forestry or some other agency]
2B. OES number [This is your agency's mission number]
3. REQUESTER (AGENCY AND NAME)
4. WHAT (type of equipment and/or operator required):
5A. WHEN? 5B. UNTIL approximately what date or time.
6. WHERE?
7. ROUTING INSTRUCTIONS: [i.e., how to get there.]
8. EN ROUTE FREQUENCIES
9. UPON ARRIVING, REPORT TO: [name and/or Incident Command
title]
10. ESTABLISH/MAINTAIN WHAT POINTS OF COMMUNICATIONS? FREQUENCY?
CALLSIGNS?:
11A. WHO SENT? 11B. CALLSIGN(S) 11C. ADDRESS 11D.RES.PHONE
11E. IN WHAT AGENCY DSW REGISTERED?
(Use reverse side to enter the same information for any
additional personnel responding on this Order) _____Check here if
applicable.
12. BRIEFING: [each one of the following items must be checked
off by the government official giving the briefing]
Briefed on safety and hazards?
Reminded to take adequate equipment, supplies, appropriate day
and night clothing, money and medications. Sleeping bag/blankets.
Drive safely, defensively, headlights on.
13. ORDER PREPARED BY (PRINT)
TITLE
DIVISION
REGION/OFFICE
SIGNATURE
14. DATE/TIME ORDER ACCOMPLISHED OR PERSONNEL ENROUTE:
15. HOME OES AGENCY NOTIFIED:
RACESBUL.148 DATE: Dec. 17, 1990
SUBJECT: RACES BULLETIN INDEX - PART 5
1 9 8 6
Number Title
86-1 Antenna Safety
86-2 Packet radio. Siskiyou County RACES/ARES meeting.
86-3 Technical: Underwriters Labs over/under voltage device
86-4 Definition of "RACES"
86-5 Weekly State RACES Net
86-6 Uses for the RACES - Part 1
86-7 Uses for the RACES - Part 2
86-8 Critique (of an earthquake exercise using hams)
86-9 Floods
86-9X Floods
86-10 CB Linear Crackdown
86-11 Kern County RACES
86-13 Who activates the RACES?
86-14 One-hour exercise question
86-15 El Dorado County RACES
86-16 Portable repeaters
86-17 Radio Officers
86-18 Family Care
86-19 HF Radio is Very Important
86-20 Yes, Non-Hams Can Join Too!
86-21 Earthquake Alarms - Part 1/2
86-22 Earthquake Alarms - Part 2/2
86-23 Rubber Duck Antennas - Part 1/3
(To be continued
RACESBUL.149 DATE: Dec. 24, 1990
SUBJECT: RACES BULLETIN INDEX - PART 6
86-24 Rubber Duck Antennas - Part 2/3
86-25 Rubber Duck Antennas - Part 3/3
86-26 Bill of Rights for Volunteers
86-27 Richter Scale
86-28 ARES and RACES. Earthquake activation Riverside
86-29 Earthquake Preparedness List for Home and Family
86-30 Packet Expanding
86-31 ATV Antenna on Aircraft
86-32 Earthquakes
86-33 RACES History - Part 1/2
86-34 RACES History - Part 2/2
86-35 ARRL, ARES and RACES
86-36 Photocopiers (warning on potential eye damage)
86-37 Proper Communications Channels
86-38 Packet Tips
86-40 California SAR 1985 Statistics Released
86-41 Packet Recommended for Every OES/CD Agency
86-42 RACES Program Guidance Policy
86-43 What is a RACES Station?
86-44 Portable Radio Tip
86-45 New State OES Callsign
86-46 New Year's Greetings!
(To be continued)
Merry Christmas to all!
RACESBUL.150 DATE: Dec. 31, 1990
SUBJECT: (reserved for Webb)