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Please be aware that since this is archive material, it may contain links that are out of date.
A few noteworthy items:
While there is no expectation of activation, please remain vigilant and informed and in-touch with your served agencies. If an activation occurs in your jurisdiction, please inform your DEC and/or ASEC of the nature and scope of the activation and your plans and anticipated needs.
If you don't have a current list of your NC ARES leadership colleagues and contact info,
log-in to the nc-ares.org database and make a spreadsheet.
Similarly, go to
This is a good time to review your ICS-204, ICS-205 and ICS-216 forms for accuracy. Be sure that everyone in your jurisdiction has a current copy.
Merry Christmas and stay safe.
Tom Brown
NC SEC
NOTE: In keeping with tradition, the Tar Heel Emergency Net (THEN) will not be held December 24th or 25th, and will resume Dec. 26th. Should an emergency, such as the forecasted snowstorm this weekend, justify an ARES activation, the THEN will be on-the-air. All five North Carolina HF National Traffic System (NTS) nets will operate as normal. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all.
Developed in 1999 by the National Weather Service and the American Radio Relay League, SKYWARN Recognition Day is designed to celebrate the contributions that SKYWARN radio operators make to the National Weather Service. During a 24 hour period, SKYWARN operators visit NWS offices and contact other radio operators across the world.
SKYWARN Recognition Day 2010 officially takes place
The fall state ARES meeting will be held on Saturday,
October 22 Update (from N4TAB):
This will be an interesting meeting and will cover some new subjects, such as WebEOC and updates about
ongoing projects such as Winlink and ICS training opportunities. Information about that meeting may be found
at
The North Carolina Section is holding a statewide Simulated Emergency Test on Saturday,
Detailed information is being added frequently to the
The North Carolina Section is holding a statewide Simulated Emergency Test on Saturday,
In order to participate in this important exercise, the ARES Area 1&2 meeting that would normally fall on that date is canceled this time around.
On the evening of Monday, October 4th, 2010, during the ARES meeting of Guilford County ARES, Weldon Fields W4AJT was appointed an Official Emergency Station (OES) in the NC Section. Weldon was also presented with a plaque, recognizing him as "Someone who has made a difference". Tom Brown N4TAB NC ARES Section Emergency Coordinator announced Weldon's appointment and presented the plaque. Steve Misel K4WEB ASEC Central Branch and Dwayne Ayers N4MIO DEC Area 10 also participated.
Jim Waynick N4JLW, Guilford County ARES EC and his outstanding ARES group made everyone welcome.
Don Campbell N4CAM, Guilford County EM director hosted the event at the Guilford County EOC and participated in an exchange of information and ideas.
I spent some quality time with David Price at a friend's house recently. We had a long talk about the usefulness of ham radio in emergencies, including the work I did in the Mississippi gulf after Katrina.
David agreed to sponsor HR 2160, and it will be announced when Congress reconvenes later this month.
See photo on our Section Facebook Page.
SITREP 02SEP10 1330 hrs
NC ARES leadership is in regular contact with EM agencies and is maintaining a close watch via WebEOC, phone, email and Winlink.
The Eastern RCC ARES group activated at 0800 hrs Thursday, September 2. The State EOC ARES group will activate at 1700 hrs September 2. Both will operate continuously until ordered to stand-down. ARES assets across NC are maintaining readiness.
Coastal County EOCs are activated and their ARES groups are in-place..
Volunteers with transportable WinLink capability are on standby in NC, SC and TN.
THIS IS NOTICE OF AN IMPENDING GENERAL ARES ACTIVATION
As of 2100 EDT tonight, activations of the State EOC and the EBRCC will occur on Thursday,
The current WX projection suggests that the Hurricane wind cone will engage the Outer Banks of NC
Jurisdictions in the affected areas have been engaged in this operation for many days and will likely, be engaged for many more days, following. Some jurisdictions are concerned that operational needs may exceed their local capacity to support their local served agencies and are forward-facing, in asking if mutual aid from non-affected jurisdictions might be a available to support them in time of need.
If you or others in your jurisdiction are in a position to assist our colleagues in Eastern NC, please let me know. Anyone that is NIMS compliant (ICS 100, 200, 700 and 800) and is available to serve for a couple of days, is eligible.
Sorry for the brevity of this message. There is no more detailed information at this time. We will add content as it is a available and as appropriate. PLEASE treat this situation as VERY real and serious.
The Tar Heel Emergency Net (3923) and the Web site www.ncarrl.org will serve as a "bulletin board" for info dissemination.
A heads up to all:
Although the projected track for Hurricane Earl is still in flux, North Carolina Emergency Management is planning for full activation as early as Wednesday, September 1st. An email was received from NCEM and is quoted below:
Hurricane Earl is projected to bring tropical storm force winds to the outer banks by 8:00 PM Thursday night (9/2), when HUREVAC projects it will be 180 miles offshore. EARL is projected to stay offshore, but any deviation to the west could mean a Category 3 storm makes landfall on the NC coast. The SERT Leader expects to activate the EOC with all SERT partners Wednesday morning.
The SERT Leader has called for SERT Partners to meet in the EOC for a briefing on Hurricane EARL at 8:30 AM tomorrow (Tuesday, Aug 31st). The briefing will last approximately 45 minutes since NCEM has a Brunswick Nuclear Power Plant exercise scheduled immediately following the briefing.
I will provide additional information as it is available.
A WebEOC event has been established: Hurricane Earl 08302010.
We will provide updates as information becomes available. We plan to attend tomorrow's briefing and will forward any cogent information immediately thereafter.
The latest NWS (Raleigh) Threat briefing is here:
http://www.erh.noaa.gov/rah/briefing/swbt/swbt.htm.
This updates at least 2 times daily - 1100 and 1700.
The National ARRL Organization has also posted information here.
Check out our Facebook Page for field day photos contributed by Section Manager Bill Morine, N2COP. While you are not required to have an account to view this page, joining will allow you to get automatic notifications of any updates.
North Carolina ARES completed the switch-over to our new membership database.
Members with appointments of EC or higher were required to submit their NIMS
compliance certificates by July 1. Those individuals who have not completed the
registration are no longer listed as having an ARES appointment. Individuals
who have not completed the required training and registered with the new membership
database will risk losing their appointments once the grace period expires on
For more information on the ARES Training Policy, training requirements and database
membership requests, please see the
The North Carolina Governor's Office has proclaimed June 21-June 28 as "Amateur Radio Recognition and Appreciation Week."
Bernie Nobles, WA4MOK, has resigned as Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC) and Tom Brown, N4TAB, has agreed to serve as his replacement.
Bernie served as SEC since 2003 and indicated he wanted to spend more time with family. During his term ARES made great strides in improving the ICS credentialing of county ECs, streamlining relations with state agencies and upgrading digital EmCOMM applications through Winlink. He provided steady leadership during a time of tremendous technological and organizational change, and we wish him and his wife, Phyllis, well.
Tom has served as Assistant Section Emergency Coordinator (ASEC) for the Central Branch, and has been instrumental in improving Amateur Radio response capability at the state Emergency Operations Center (EOC). A strong proponent of interoperability, Tom will expand integration of Amateur Radio in the state’s emergency communications plans.
We appreciate Bernie’s accomplishments and we welcome Tom as North Carolina ARES moves towards 21st century EmCOMM solutions.
ARRL Section Manager, Bill Morine, N2COP and ARRL Roanoke Division Vice Director Dr. Jim and both plan separately to visit many North Carolina ARRL club Field Day locations this year. Because North Carolina is such a large section, visits to club Field Day locations by the Section Manager are divided into North Carolina's three major sections - Mountains, Piedmont and Coastal Plains - with one area visited each year. This year it's the Coastal Plains turn for Bill who plans to visit clubs east of I-95, and Dr. Jim will be visiting Piedmont clubs. Mountain clubs - be patient! Your turn is in 2011.
I would appreciate if a representative from all clubs east of I-95 would please send email to n2cop@arrl.org giving your Field Day location and operating hours.
Dr. Jim's planned route is Aiken to Columbia via I-20 East, proceed East on I-26 to Charleston. After that, North along the coast on US-17 to Wilmington, NC, then head West on I-40 through Raleigh to Greensboro. From Greensboro, I-85 to Charlotte. Then South on I-77 to Columbia. After Columbia, West on I-20 to Aiken. Any group that would like a visit from us along this route to send an e-mail to n2zz@arrl.org and ae4ux@arrl.net with your intended hours of operation (including setup), detailed driving directions, and a contact phone number.
Take advantage of the many Field Day resources available at www.arrl.org/field-day.
A new Photo Section has been added to NCARRL. The photos are accessible through the main page menus. The home page menu includes the date of the latest additions to the section.
With the help of several ARRL members, we have started creating a new section,
As discussed at the state ARES meeting in Raleigh on Saturday, April 24th,
everyone is encouraged to send a letter to members of the U.S. House of
Representative's Energy & Commerce Committee to hear HR2160 and S1755, the
"Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Act of 2009". This legislation
is crucial to the future of Amateur Radio emergency communications because
it will examine and hopefully protect frequencies used for EmCOMM. The Senate
version of the bill, S1755, passed the Senate unanimously in 2009 but its
House equivalent, HR2160, needs both more co-sponsors and hearings so it
can be voted upon. Please take time to send a letter
The statewide ARES meeting starts at 10:30, location State EOC, 116 West Jones Street, Raleigh, NC.
The meeting is open to anyone interested in ARES, but most who attend are
DECs and ECs.
Meeting agenda:
ARRL made the transition April 13 to its new website, which has been in development for three years and is the largest change in communications outreach for the League since its first website was introduced twenty years ago. The new web site is far more interactive than the model it just replaced and will contain much more information and resources. Like any large transition, however, there are glitches which need to be addressed. Many Section Manager functions are not presently available. ARRL staff is very aware of this and is working to restore these functions as soon as possible. I hope to have a section newsletter shortly once that capability is restored. Everyone's patience is appreciated while these issues are addressed and resolved.
Memorial service for George S Stentz, Sr (WA4OBR SK) will be
Saturday,
Greetings from Wilmington, where the weather is finally getting warm and people are going to nearby Wrightsville Beach again. I am honored to have been elected as your Section Manger for the next two years, and I welcome the opportunity to meet old friends and make new ones at upcoming hamfests, club meetings, Field Day and other occasions. I'll be at RARSfest this weekend in Raleigh and look forward to seeing many of you there.
I have big shoes to fill. Our section has been fortunate to have a
succession of great Section Managers, and I want to thank especially Tim
Slay, N4IB, for his four years of service. As I talk with other ARRL
officials, I realize that we have a well managed, friendly and effective
section. That's a tribute to leaders like Tim, the over 250 ARRL field
appointments in the section, and most importantly - YOU! Let's keep the
North Carolina section strong and responsive to all facets of Amateur Radio,
and I look forward to talking with many of you in person or on the air soon.
I invite you to join me every week for the Thursday night session of the
daily Tar Heel Emergency Net (THEN) at
On April 10, 2010, Central Carolina SKYWARN will be at StormFest at the NC Museum of Natural Sciences
with a Special Event Station operating under the callsign WX4NC. We will be promoting SKYWARN and
Amateur Radio.
StormFest Flyer (pdf)
Do you live in Central North Carolina and need Basic Spotter Training?
Has it been 3 years since you've had Basic
Spotter Training and it's now time to refresh? SKYWARN Basic Spotter
Training will be offered on the CCS Information Net on
PowerPoint presentations
Due to the earthquake in Chile, IARU Region 2 and Radio Club de Chile request
that emergency frequencies be kept clear. This can have implications for the
NC QSO party. Please see the article on the national
Effective April 1, 2010, our new ARRL Section Manager will be
In order for Bill to prepare for
the new SM duties,
Congratulations to both on their new appointments. They will both serve us well.
Ladies & Gentlemen: Here we go again with another winter storm, but the difference with this one is that it may cover the whole state with some form of winter precipitation, from snow, sleet, freezing rain. The North Carolina Emergency Management has activated under Level 4. For ARES, this means on Standby. So be prepared. Monitor your usual local communications channels for ARES activations in your area. Also check the Tarheel Net web page for any updates.
The potential for significant wintry weather across the Central Carolina SKYWARN coverage area exists for Friday and Saturday, January 29 & 30. Central Carolina SKYWARN will activate at the onset of the event across the CCS coverage area to take initial reports and then hold directed nets at the bottom of each hour for the duration of the event or until such time the National Weather Service directs us to deactivate. SKYWARN will temporarily cease operations after the 11:30 PM directed net on Friday night and resume operations at 5:30am on Saturday. The NWS will be looking for the following criteria from spotters:
The National Weather Service is especially interested in hourly and event totals and any changeover in precipitation type.
We will activate on our primary repeater, the 146.88 repeater. Should
this repeater go offline, our backups for this event, in order of use, are:
147.105 (Tone of 82.5 Hz) - Broadway, NC
147.135 (Tone of 82.5 Hz) - Chapel Hill, NC
Carolina 440 UHF Linked System - Visit www.carolina440.net for a list of
those frequencies.
Reports may also be emailed to the NWS at rah.reports@noaa.gov.
Spotters are encouraged to stay listen to NOAA weather radio or visit www.weather.gov/rah for the latest weather information.
Keep an eye on the main ARRL home page for the most current information.
From the ARRL home page:
The ARRL encourages US amateurs to be aware of the emergency operations on the
following frequencies: 7.045 and 3.720 MHz (IARU Region 2 nets), 14.265, 7.265 and
3.977 MHz (SATERN nets), and 14.300 MHz (Intercontinental Assistance and Traffic Net);
the International Radio Emergency Support Coalition (IRESC) is also active on EchoLink
node 278173.
Please remember to keep these frequencies clear at all times, even if you do not hear any activity.
January North Carolina Section Update from Tim Slay, N4IB (pdf document)
For the latest information on SATERN activation, see http://www.satern.org
The following two messages have been passed on to us by N4IB:
From RSOE Emergency and Disaster Information Service
Budapest, Hungary:
Event: Earthquake
Location: Haiti Capital City Port-au-Prince area
Situation:
A strong earthquake has hit the impoverished country of Haiti where a hospital
has collapsed and people are screaming for help. According to CNN the area is
also under a Tsunami alert for the Dominican Republic. Haiti and the Dominican
Republic share the island of Hispaniola. The earthquake had a preliminary
magnitude of 7.0 and was centered about 14 miles (22 kilometers) west from the
capital of Port-au-Prince, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. An
Associated Press videographer saw the wrecked hospital in nearby Petionville,
and a U.S. government official reported seeing houses that had tumbled into a
ravine. No further details on any casualties or other damage were immediately
available. "Everybody is just totally, totally freaked out and shaken," said
Henry Bahn, a visiting official with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
"The sky is just gray with dust." Bahn said he was walking to his hotel room
when the ground began to shake. "I just held on and bounced across the wall,"
he said. "I just hear a tremendous amount of noise and shouting and screaming
in the distance."
From SATERN:
Subject: UPDATE - EMERGENCY ACTIVATION of SATERN Net For Haitian Earthquake
TO: All SATERN Operators, Southern Territory, The Salvation Army
CC: All ARRL Leadership in the Southern Territory of The Salvation Army
Greetings:
National SATERN Director, Major Patrick McPherson - WW9E - reports that 20 meters is
no longer viable for this evening. He has asked all active SATERN Operators with HF
privileges to monitor 7.265.0 MHz and 3.977.7 MHz. SATERN Operators in the Southern
Territory are in a generally excellent geographic position to hear any signals from
Haiti on those frequencies - particularly on 75 meters.
Again, normal SATERN Net protocols apply. That is, there should be a Net Control who will be in charge of the frequency. All transmissions should be directed to the Net Control. Please listen for a Net Control on those frequencies. If you do not hear a Net Control or a relay to Net Control, but do receive formal EMERGENCY or PRIORITY traffic from Haiti (e.g. traffic with a name and a telephone number or e-mail address for the addressee and the same information about the sender), please contact me at 601.421.1496 with that traffic and I will pass it on to the appropriate authorities. But please try to work through Net Control if you can hear them or a relay to Net Control. Passing traffic to me is a LAST RESORT.
Beginning, tomorrow, as
Please keep the people of Haiti and our Salvation Army personnel and other disaster relief personnel already in that country in your prayers.