ALERT Newsletter – September 2011

Hi Everyone, Do you have any plans Sunday night? If not, or if you can squeeze it in, I cordially invite you to join the new ALERT Sunday Night Net. This net, formerly the BARC Sunday Night Net meets every Sunday at 7PM on 146.88 MHz, with a backup frequency of 146.76 MHz. Glenn Glass, KE4YZK, formed the net about 15 years ago and I took over as Net Manager from Mark Nichols, K7NOA in 2001. BARC has now donated the net to ALERT for ALERT promotion and visibility. To BARC, we the members of ALERT say “thank you” for your support and confidence. The ASNN is a “discussion net” and as time goes on I’m going to slip training snippets in as to what the NWS and ALERT does and doesn’t need reported, operating procedures and anything else this dusty brain can concoct. One thing to be stressed is the net is NOT an emergency net and won’t be activating for emergencies. One should always respond to your local ARES / Skywarn Net when situations arise. Should the ASNN be in session and a situation should arise, it will, as it has in numerous cases in the past, clear the frequency for the Jefferson County ARES Emergency Net. So, once again, if you are available (carry an HT into the choir loft, the minister won’t mind), give the net a try. I think you will like it! “Halap, halap, I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” Or How to properly call for help during emergencies. “Mark call 911!!!” ”Click” as the caller hangs up. In my line of work I’ve heard this more than once, and each time I have had to call the caller back and ask for the proper information to give 911, which in turn delayed the response time. This revealed to me that most people really have no idea how to make calls for emergency assistance. The “who, what, where, when and why” rules apply and should be taught, but apparently are not. “Call 911!” Tell me why I’m calling, so I can tell the operator. Do you need the police or paramedics? It makes a big difference. Engine 8 isn’t very helpful in a bank robbery, and Car 347’s officers may not know how to deliver a baby. What is the situation? The EMS will need to know. “Bringing the paddles” doesn’t do much good for a lady in labor & air splints are overkill for a guy who just fainted because he read his power bill. By providing the information of who you are, including an exact location of where the emergency is located and when it happened help streamline the process. The EMS will know what they are heading for and will be better mentally and physically prepared to respond properly. It eliminates the wondering and guesswork. Another thing not really taught is how to get help via amateur radio. Do you really know how to seek help? Just saying “Hey can someone out thar call the pair of medics over to the Walls Smart” just might not suffice. How do you transmit a distress call? I’m glad you asked. Now the following is to be used only for bonifide emergencies. Using it in any other case and you will end up in Leavenworth, Sing Sing, Atmore or, well, you get the idea. Distress calling procedure: 1. Tune to your local ARES / Skywarn frequency or the most heavily populated frequency you know of. 2. If you hear stations on frequency, break in and attempt to contact them. 3. If they hear and acknowledge you, calmly give your situation, remembering the “who, what, where, when and why” rules. Then wait at the location for help. Don’t wander off. That turns a rescue into a search and rescue. In 99% of the cases STAY PUT. 4. If it seems no one has heard you, then you will have to “broadcast in the blind”. Don’t let the word “broadcast” scare you. You do this every time you send a CQ or throw your call out on a silent repeater seeking a contact. 5. Say slowly and clearly the words “MAYDAY” three times. 6. Say, “This is” and give your call sign three times and your name once. 7. Give your position as exact as possible. Give your address, or street / cross street, or highway mile marker (you do you pay attention to those little green signs, don’t you?) or if you have GPS, your latitude and longitude. Or give your distance to any well-known landmark that may help rescuers locate the incident location. Use the best or most logical options you have. Giving latitude and longitude, when you know the street and cross street is a little kooky. 8. Give the nature of the emergency – medical, fire, criminal, etc. 9. Indicate the type of assistance required – police, EMS, etc. 10. Say “over” and listen. Example: Mayday – mayday – mayday. This is WD4NYL, WD4NYL, WD4NYL. My name is Mark Wells. I’m located on Highway 45 near Johnson Road. I’ve just been in an accident and I’m trapped in my car. Please call 911. Over”. If someone responds, great! If not, there is a decent chance someone listening on a scanner could be calling 911. If you hear no response, repeat the above for two minutes and then listen for three. If still no answer, to save your batteries, cut off the radio and wait until the top of the hour and begin calling again. It’s good if you indicate that you are going to do this, so someone listening will know to listen again. This method is the recommended procedure for marine radios and can be effectively used on both the ham bands or on the 11-meter band. And, yes, even though we may cuss it, every amateur in emergency communications or planning on going on a trip, should have a CB radio somewhere in their arsenal. Repeaters may die; whole forests of repeaters may be uninhabited just when you need someone the most, or you may get stuck somewhere between the Podunk and Possum Hollow repeaters. But, chances are some Bubba is listening on Channel 9 or even more likely on Channel 19. He may call 911…. or he may come in a dually and help haul you boohunkus out of that ditch. Giving oneself multiple options is savvy move, one that could save your hide someday. Always have one or more backup plans. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Mark’s Almanac September is the ninth month of the year and the seventh month on the Roman calendar, which is where the month gets its name. Temperatures are still hot at the beginning of the month, but, by months end, fall will definitely be felt. Noticeable in September will be the thickening of the cat’s fur, as she begins growing her winter coat & the drift of Yellow Giant Sulphur Butterflies as they migrate towards Florida. Weather starts shifting from the summer to autumn pattern and back again. Storms resemble the August pattern, but the Bermuda High starts shifting southward and begins weakening, which will weaken the blocking effect it has had which prevented fronts from invading from the northwest. September is the peak of the hurricane season, the actual peak being on September 10. This peak coincides with the time of “syzygy”, when the combination of the sun and moon’s gravity and autumnal equinox combine to provide the highest astronomical tides of the year. Add a hurricane’s storm surge on top of this and you can have incredibly destructive flooding. Meteorological autumn begins on September 1. Astronomical autumn begins at Autumnal Equinox on September 23 at 4:04 A.M. CDT. On this date, if there is sufficient solar activity, and you are away from city lights, the aurora may possibly be seen, as the Equinox dates are the two most favored times of the year for auroral sightings. Traditionally at this time when one should bury a poultice of wolf bane, two calico cat whiskers and a clove of garlic under a south leaning hickory tree, under the light of the North Star. This will keep werewolves away. Would I lie? September’s Full Moon is Full Corn Moon in Native American folklore. This year it is also “Harvest Moon”. So called because the moon is larger and seems to rise at almost the same time every night, which allowed harvesting to continue on into the night. Most believe that Harvest Moon is always in September, however this isn’t always the case. Harvest Moon is actually the full moon closest to the Autumnal Equinox, and so occasionally it can occur with October Hunters Moon. Last, but not least, lets talk chickens. Whether Chicken Little or little chicken it matters not. Chickens nationwide will be celebrating the month of September, which is of course National Chicken Month – which is certainly something to crow about. ……………………………………………………………………………………. This month’s meeting will be on September 13 at 7PM at the National Weather Service Forecast Office at the Shelby County Airport. September also features a meeting of the ALERT board of Directors. I hope to see you there Mark WD4NYL Vice-President www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/