The Southwest Emergency Preparedness Group is working on a communications plan to formulate “best practices” for communication between NET team members within a NET team and communication between neighboring NETs.SW NET Communication Plan. The basis for this document is the extensive work already done by the Multnomah NET, and in particular Chris Vardas and Gary St. Hilaire who shared what they have done to date.
POEM ⌠
Fire Station Centers (supported by ARES) ⌠
NETs – HAMS ⌠
Field NETs using FRS radios
Perhaps we should consider a test with different NETs in the area. I think this would be very valuable. And the only way we can do that is by testing some simplex frequencies since the repeaters may not be functional after a Cascadia quake. However it's wise to have some established repeaters to use and check on in the event of Cascadia just in case they are working.<!--break-->
We are tentatively meeting at 1830 (6:30pm) on Tuesdays on Frequency 146.980 (this frequency does require a CTCSS code-contact Chris Vardas for more information). We may move from this frequency soon if we confirm that we don't have privileges to use the repeater (we are trying to get resolution on this matter soon). Our back-up frequency, presently, is 145.230 which we go to after a few minutes of preamble and chat on the primary frequency listed above. Feel free to join us. We appreciate all input, experience and ideas on how to do this better.
The state net Tuesdays xxxxx @ 2000
The D1 net every evening 147.32+at 1930
The McARES net Wed 146.840+ @ 1900
There will be a link to the EOC plan when it is available.
This is from a thread on PDX NET, a forum for Portland NETs, and was posted on March 1, 2006, by Lawrence Behmer.
NET communications is something that is a current high priority in our office. Patty Hopkins, who is our training program coordinator, and I will be working on all the details of the communication plan and protocols over the next two to three weeks. The quick details of the plan are that 3 person teams (2 amateur radio operators and 1 support person) will respond, first to the staging area to check in with the team leader, and then to the nearest fire station. This is where the communications equipment will be kept and maintained. This will be the group that communicates to us at the EOC. An additional amateur radio operator will be based at the teams staging location. As teams are dispatched in the field (remember, 1 leader with a 5 to 7 person span of control) they will communicate (and document) all important information back to the radio operator and team leader at the staging area. That person will forward the info to the radio team at the fire station. That team will get the information to us at the EOC.
Teams that are in the field with no communication are to utilize a runner to get that information to the staging area.
There are 2 sets of frequencies to communicate on. One frequency for communication between NET's in the field, at the staging area, and the fire station.....and one for communication with the fire station team and the EOC.
If you're worried about your team not having an amateur radio operator or not enough of them, don't. We have an agreement with ARES who are a group of local amateur radio operators to respond to teams within the context of the plan. Furthermore, there are more radio trained NET's than you might think, but we'll always take more.
Again, all the little details are being worked out and this has been going according to schedule. Communications plans are always being tweaked based off of a plethora of possibilities; needs, technology changes, practicality, etc.
Develop a scheme where we set-up static and roving communications points around the border of our defined Multnomah boundaries. We attempted to communicate with one another and with a centrally located person at our primary staging area. From this first experiment, we got a pretty good idea what terrain problems we had and where there were gaps in communication. Topography (hills, trees and elevation definitions) pretty much limits our ability to communicate.
In addition, we defined a specific frequency and sub-channel (privacy code) that both the FRS and GMRS radio receivers can use. We have made FRS the standard radio that all NETs must provide in order to communicate. We publish the frequency & subchannel on each monthly newsletter.
All in all, I think we did determine that FRS was the best way to go for general NET usage simply because it was cheap, easily available, easy to replace batteries and works just as well as the more expensive GMRS (license required, too) radios. Despite the power, terrain pretty much rules the ability to communicate, especially on the hilly, westside. Choose a channel and subchannel that will work for your group. We choose channel 14, subchannel 7....with the hopes that this would isolate our conversation from the general public enough to give us a relatively quiet line from which to talk. Because of distance issues, we feel that use of that channel/subchannel could be used by other NET's just fine...with little likelihood that it would overlap our ability to communicate locally.
http://www.popularwireless.com/codetable.html is a link to a listing of CTCSS Compatability in FRS Radios.
Family Radio Service radios are the new walkie-talkies. Operating in the 462- to 468-MHz UHF band, they have a 2-mile range and don't require an FCC license.
the Family Radio Service (FRS) frequency range, which has 14 channels of its own. The radio also has 38 codes meant to eliminate interference and some basic privacy features, like voice scrambling to help reduce eavesdropping.
equipped to receive weather information broadcasts directly from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which operates a nationwide radio network of 560 transmitters that broadcasts nothing but weather reports 24 hours a day. Tune in and you're less likely to be surprised by rain. But the network is also the best source of information about natural disasters like tornados and earthquakes.
Pros and Cons
Three primary radio types:
| FRS | Family Radio Service: small pocket-style walkie talkies; inexpensive, readily available |
| GMRS | General Mobile Radio Service: moderately more expensive, requires $80 no-test FCC license/tax (License covers immediate family or business members) |
| HAM | FCC license required, test to obtain license |
| Brand | Model |
| Cobra | 250/300 |
| Cherokee | 465 |
| Midland | 75-510 |
| Motorola | Sport any |
| Motorola | Talkabout any |
| Radio Shack | 106 |
All radios should cover channels up through 14 and a minimum of 38 tones
Some channels 2-7 are restricted to GMRS
AA batteries are best…longest lasting, easy to replace, most common size
Possible sources for FRS radios