TO: ALL WOOD COUNTY ARES MEMBERS (OFFICIAL)
ALL ARES AND NON-ARES AMATEURS ANYWHERE (INFORMATION)
FROM: KEN HARRIS WA8LLM ARRL DISTRICT 3 EMERGENCY COORDINATOR
WOOD COUNTY EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS INC.
WOOD COUNTY BULLETIN NR 16.50 DATE: December 11, 2016
SUBJECT: SUGGESTIONS FOR EMERGENCY PACKET
Packet Radio operators should never send messages from a keyboard in a real time emergency. This can hold up the entire system by preventing other stations from moving traffic in the shortest possible time. Accuracy, speed, and a hard copy (paper) are the attributes that elevated Packet Radio from a day to day information center, to an emergency communications resource.
The goal of Packet Radio in an emergency should be to maintain an exchange of the maximum amount of letter perfect traffic in the least transmission time per message. Until the advent of Packet Radio thru the DAREN (Digital Amateur Radio Emergency Network) system in West Virginia, no Amateur Radio mode met this need.
State and County Emergency Operating and Communications Centers everywhere should install one, or better yet, two Packet Radio Terminal Stations, and one or two off-line computers. The off- line computer/s can be used to type up the messages and save them to some kind of memory device which can be given to the Packet Radio stations to send the messages.
Off-line computers can be used by any employee or volunteer with good typing skills. No radio license is required. The memory devices are then given to the Amateur Radio operators for transmission. Received messages can be saved to a memory device and given to the off-in operator who can make paper copies of the messages to be distributed to the proper addressee.
A voice frequency should be established between the various packet radio terminals for use as a coordination or "order wire" channel. This can be most useful in solving technical problems quickly and for giving quick replies to some packet messages. Just because a message was received by packet does not mean that it is chiseled in stone, and that a reply must also be sent by Packet Radio. Whereas it may be deemed appropriate that a written (packet) reply be made for the record, a voice radio reply may be faster and more appreciated. A written reply can follow later.
Ken Harris WA8LLM
WCEC
Wood County WV