Hooking Up In the First 168 | Community Spirit

The premise of community emergency response teams is that, in a disaster, the usual first-responder public services (fire, EMS, police, and utility) will be quickly overwhelmed and that it will be neighbors helping neighbors survive through the first 72 hours. Based on disasters here in the United States as well as around the world, CANDO (the Churchill Area Neighbors Disaster Organization) believes that 168 hours is a more likely timeframe.

Currently we have approximately 25 CANDO CERTs spread randomly throughout the 5,000 residential units in the Churchill area. If telephone communication becomes disrupted, which we can assume likely in a disaster, having some alternate means of communication will be important for maintaining contact with and supporting each other as we aid our families and our neighbors.

Fortunately, technology provides three widely available alternatives for direct two-way communication:  

1. FRS - Family radio Service

2. GMRS - General Mobile Radio Service

3. ARS - Amateur Radio Service

FRS radios have 14 channels, a maximum range of 2 miles (an effective range of 0.5 to 1 mile), and require no FCC license for operation. GMRS radios have 8 channels, a maximum range of 5 miles (an effective range of 1 to 2 miles), and require purchasing an operator's license from the FCC (~$85 good for 5 years). Many currently available two-way radios are hybrid models that contain both the FRS and GMRS channels. Prices for a pair of hybrids range from below $20 to $50 or more.

The tactical downside of FRS and GMRS radios as part of a disaster-communication strategy is that the 22 FRS-GMRS channels are currently not a part of any public emergency management plan.

What is supported by all levels of government emergency planning is amateur or ham radio. This is no coincidence since part of the raison d’être for the amateur radio service is to function as the means of communication in times of emergency. Ham radios have more channels ("frequencies" in ham-speak) and a greater range than either FRS or GMRS radios. Prices for handheld ham radios start at around $100. Because they are, in effect, small FM radio stations, the FCC requires ham radio operators to pass a licensing test prior to receiving a call sign. The local test fee is around $15.

CANDO currently has about five licensed ham operators. Obviously, it would be nice if every member of CANDO were a licensed ham radio operator, but that isn't a realistic goal due to the cost, time involved, and personal interest. What is realistic is to recognize that many members of CANDO and many more of our neighbors in the Churchill area already have FRS and GMRS radios they use in pursuit of outdoor sports like fishing, hunting, hiking, and skiing. From a practical stand point, therefore, our CANDO communication strategy must take into account all three technologies and forge the missing link between FRS-GMRS radios, the radios many people have, and ARS, the radios used in public emergency planning.

One of our CANDO goals for the 2010-2011 year is to forge this link. We want to have the confidence that in a disaster, our CANDO team can hook up in the first 168. Fortunately, public emergency management planning is currently reviewing a recommendation that could be just what we need. The recommendation would specify how FRS and GMRS radios should be used to augment the existing ARS emergency radio network.

In the meantime, here are three things you can to further our ability to hook up in the first 168: first, locate the ham radio operator nearest you; second, if you don't already have one of the three technologies mentioned in this newsletter, look into it; and third, whether you have a radio or buy one, get extra batteries.