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Tuscaloosa Tornado Audio 12/16/2000
Cal Davis, KF4LAR, Net Control during the Tuscaloosa tornado, gets a real time report from amateurs in the field watching the tornado tear through the city’s Englewood community.
(Audio recorded and edited by ALERT)
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Real Audio

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In a transmission made just moments after the tornado roared through Tuscaloosa’s Englewood community, a member of the Tuscaloosa Amateur Radio Club provides a vivid description of what he sees around him, while helping rescue a storm victim from a car.
(Audio recorded and edited by ALERT)
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src="https://i0.wp.com/alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/audio/listen.gif?resize=45%2C23" Real Audio
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Net Control Cal Davis, KF4LAR, maintains a sense of calm in the midst of sheer chaos, instructing hams in the field to concentrate their reports on injured people needing help.(Audio recorded and edited by ALERT)
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src="https://i0.wp.com/alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/audio/listen.gif?resize=45%2C23" Real Audio
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Amateurs in the field get a stern warning from Net Control Cal Davis, KF4LAR, to take cover as the tornado moves across the city, from west to east, near Skyland Blvd.
(Audio recorded and edited by ALERT)
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src="https://i0.wp.com/alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/audio/listen.gif?resize=45%2C23" Real Audio
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In an interview with ALERT’s David Black, KB4KCH,
Cal Davis, KF4LAR, describes some of the benefits amateur radio provided during the December 16th tornado, despite the availability of other more advanced communications technology.  Davis also shares details of a valuable lesson his group learned about providing emergency communications support.
(Audio recorded and edited by ALERT)
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src="https://i0.wp.com/alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/audio/listen.gif?resize=45%2C23" Real Audio
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Amateurs go through the damage zone looking for tornado victims, while staying in contact with W4KCQ Net Control at the EOC.
(Audio recorded and edited by ALERT)
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src="https://i0.wp.com/alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/audio/listen.gif?resize=45%2C23" Real Audio
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Kirk Junkin, KC4ZMP, is asked to assess how many injured people he sees at his location. The report is needed so amateurs can give doctors at DCH Regional Medical Center an idea of how many patients to expect.
 
Meanwhile, TARC members discuss activation of the National Guard, as the magnitude of the tornado’s impact becomes more evident, while the search for more injured people continues.
(Audio recorded and edited by ALERT)
src="https://i0.wp.com/alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/audio/listen.gif?resize=45%2C23" MP3
src="https://i0.wp.com/alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/audio/listen.gif?resize=45%2C23" Real Audio
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An amateur in the field advises Net Control of a storm victim needing medical aid.  Hams help with pinpointing the person’s location so rescue crews can respond.
(Audio recorded and edited by ALERT)
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src="https://i0.wp.com/alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/audio/listen.gif?resize=45%2C23" Real Audio
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TARC member Chuck Beams, KG4EER, describes what he and fellow spotter Trip Harris, KG4DMH, saw as they pulled up to shattered homes, looking for victims to help moments after the tornado had moved through.
(Audio recorded and edited by ALERT)
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src="https://i0.wp.com/alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/audio/listen.gif?resize=45%2C23" Real Audio
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Chuck Beams, KG4EER, who along with Trip Harris, KG4DMH, helped rescue victims moments after the tornado’s attack, describes a chance encounter on the telephone after the storm and which led to a very heartfelt thanks.
(Audio recorded and edited by ALERT)
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For Chuck Beams, KG4EER, the December 16th tornado that ravaged Tuscaloosa will mean a lifetime of memories.  But one scene stands out above the others:  Beams’ rescue of James Fitts, and the heartbreaking search for Fitts’ wife, Carol, who died in the storm.
(Audio recorded and edited by ALERT)
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src="https://i0.wp.com/alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/audio/listen.gif?resize=45%2C23" Real Audio
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In their own words:Amateur radio operators Cal Davis, KF4LAR, and Chuck Beams, KG4EER, describe their roles in the December 16th, 2000 tornado that killed 11 people in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.(Edited by David Black, KB4KCH)
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src="https://i0.wp.com/alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/audio/listen.gif?resize=45%2C23" Real Audio
   
Funnel clouds over west Alabama! Listen to Tuscaloosa Skywarn spotters as they track severe thunderstorms and funnel clouds across their county! Transmissions recorded 5/9/98 off the 146.820 MHz repeater. Net Control is Kirk Junkin, KC4ZMP. Note: Some transmissions have been edited due to interference on the frequency. Recorded by ALERT.
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April 8th, 1998 severe weather outbreak affecting Jefferson county, Alabama. Communications between Net Control stations for ALERT (operating at the National Weather Service in Alabaster) and amateurs in and near the tornado ravaged area west of Birmingham.
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West Alabama coverage of April 8th.Listen in as radio amateurs in the Tuscaloosa area relay reports of damage from the same tornado that slammed into west Jefferson county moments later, killing 32 people.West Alabama hams were active on several frequencies, including 146.820 MHz src="pix/docs.gif" in Tuscaloosa. These transmissions were recorded on the 145.350 MHz “tall tower” repeater which was used to relay damage reports from the eastern part of the county.
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Palm Sunday tornado, March 27, 1994. Excerpts of on-air transmissions by Skywarn radio amateurs. In this recording, Jack Blair, N4KMJ, gives chilling details of what he sees as he arrives at the Goshen United Methodist Church in Piedmont, Alabama, where a tornado had struck moments earlier, killing 20 people inside, including Blair’s wife. 
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