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Washtenaw ARPSC related material
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Ham/Amateur Radio Providing Public Service Communications:
Washtenaw county ARPSC is a volunteer organization of Amateur Radio Operators that provides two-way radio communications to help coordinate various non-profit Public Service events such as parades, foot races, and bike-a-thons. In addition, we provide communications to such organizations as the American Red Cross, assuring that communications is never lost to their shelters, when deployed. We also may work with CERT and police, fire, and Emergency Management groups when additional communications are needed during emergencies. ARPSC members receive regular training in communications techniques and are skilled a delivering Tactical and Logistical communications when other radio systems have failed or have become overloaded. ARPSC members are also used in support of the NWS "Skywarn" system of tornado and severe weather spotting. ARPSC uses existing radio "repeater" and digital Packet Radio infrastructures to provide communications without relying on commercial systems. See ARPSC Information for more details.
Emergency Communications:
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In times of Disaster or Emergency, particularly when there is a Communications Emergency, the ARPSC can step in and provide an alternate means of getting the important messages through. Amateur Radio and the ARPSC, using their already existing RF-only infrastructure or Repeaters, home stations, mobiles, and handheld radios, provide two-way Tactical and/or Operational voice communications on behalf of a Served Agency such as police/fire/Red Cross/CERT. When commercial systems fail or become overloaded, Amateur Radio can rapidly adjust to changing needs and provide an alternate network. In many cases we can provide low-speed Data (text and/or TCP/IP protocols) to move data across town or across the state. ARPSC also interfaces with the National Traffic System (NTS) to move Radiograms (much like a Telegram) to anywhere in North America, and even overseas. Amateur Radio (and the ARPSC) step in during disasters such as hurricanes (Katrina), earthquakes (Haiti), and tsunamis (Japan), and oftentimes provide the only means of communications when commercial and public service communications systems have been knocked out. Amateur Radio provides a method where disaster victims can get a Health and Welfare message out to their loved ones that they are Okay. See ARPSC EMCOMM for more information.
Washtenaw ARPSC uses the following Repeaters for much of their operations. Additionally, various VHF/UHF Simplex, Packet, and HF frequencies are also used as applicable to the mission at hand.
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Washtenaw County ARPSC Repeater Information |
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Primary |
N8DUY -- 145.15 (100.0 PL)
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Backup |
W8FSA -- 146.92 (100.0 PL)
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Alternate |
WB8TKL -- 146.96 (no PL)
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Drills & Exercises:
The local Ham Radio clubs have been providing communications for a number of Public Service events such as: One Helluva Ride, the Komen Ride for the Cure, and others. Both the ARROW radio club and the Chelsea radio club participate in the annual ARRL Field Day exercise where Amateurs all across the nation set up radio stations and antenna structures and operate for 24 hours on generator power - proving that we *can* operate effectively for long periods of time without commercial infrastructures or permanent antennas. In all of these events the manhours and other measurables are reported through formal channels to the ARRL Michigan Section where reports are made available to the Michigan State Police and our legislators, showing how Amateur Radio helps support the citizens of Michigan.Each year, during the first weekend in October, the ARPSC participates in a nation-wide drill and training exercise called the Simulated Emergency Test (S.E.T.). In this exercise we interface with Served Agencies such as Emergency Management, Red Cross, CERT, city and county officials, and police/fire/hospitals in an exercise where we work through a pre-determined scenario that tests our abilities to respond and provide the needed communications skills to get the job done. This typically includes being able to get messages to and from the State EOC (SEOC) in Lansing, communicate with the EOCs in neighboringcounties, place personnel into the field to work Search and Rescue (SAR) and direction finding of hung transmitters or aircraft Emergency Locator Transmitters (ELT). This is a measured exercise and provides us with feedback into areas where we can improve ourselves with further training and practice, as well as fine tuning our written procedures and policies.
Skywarn:
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Skywarn is a program managed by the National Weather Service (NWS).
Its mission is to collect ground truth reports from trained spotters during local severe weather events such as tornado warnings. The reports are collected via Amateur Radio networks and funneled to the MICON radio network, which is also run by Amateur Radio operators. MICON connects 17 counties across Southeastern Michigan directly into the White Lake NWS facility where forcasters use this additional data when issuing and verifying severe weather watches and warnings, improving the forecasting and warning processes. These spotters are trained by personnel from the local NWS offices each Spring in advance of the coming severe weather season.
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Skywarn Nets in Southeastern Michigan are as follows:
NOTE: Many nets require that you have a current and valid Skywarn Spotter ID number in order to check in.
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Washtenaw county
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Wayne county
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Monroe county
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Jackson county
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Lenewee county
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Livingston county
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NOAA Weather Radio:
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NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) is a nationwide network of radio stations broadcasting National Weather Service (NWS) warnings, watches, forcasts and other hazard information 24 hours a day. For the 17 counties in Southeastern Michigan, these weather products originate from the NWS facility in White Lake, Michigan, near Pontiac. More information is available at the NOAA Weather Radio web site which includes coverage maps and receiver information. There is also a NOAA Streaming Audio page that includes live broadcasts and audio archives. NOAA Weather Radio transmitters that cover the Washtenaw county area are:
NWR Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME) is a digitally encoded message that contains the type of message, counties affected, and message expiration time. The link includes how SAME works, how to program your radio, and codes for areas nationwide. The SAME code for Washtenaw county is: 026161 |
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Current Weather Contitions:
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