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 ARES BULLETIN NR 21.09 DATE: February 28, 2021
SUBJECT: DON'T WAIT FOR THE PHONE TO RING
In an emergency situation you should be prepared to react as soon as possible. If you're monitoring a scanner, or other radio, and hear some kind of activity that may need your team's line of expertise, you should be prepared to go into action.
There are times when you may have been overlooked as a response agency if you are not a Fire, Police, Rescue, or Ambulance team. If the agencies that you have worked with before know what your capabilities are, they may be glad to know you're coming, if they think to notify you. They may have been too busy and forgot the assets that your team can give them.
Don't wait for the telephone to ring, get your equipment ready to proceed into action. But, before you respond, contact the Officer in Charge of the incident to see if your group or equipment is needed. If you just respond and show up without first letting the Officer in Charge know you're coming, you may give your team a bad name.
Since you're responding to someone else's activity you will need to follow their directions and orders. But, in any case don't make a nuisance of yourself and give your team a bad name. It takes a long time to build a good name back up for yourself if that happens.
Ken Harris WA8LLM
WCEC
Wood County WV