GBARC Emergency Drills

GBARC March SET – March 27 2021

This month we will resume having Simulated Emergency Tests or SETS.  The set will be held from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM on Saturday the 27th of March.  - THIS IS A DRILL - The SET Scenario is as follows:

• We have been notified by that National Weather Service that Fairfield County will be under a high wind warning and tornado watch from Saturday March 27th at 1600 to Sunday, March 28th at 0200  It is expected that tornados up to EF-5 will touch down and widespread wind damage including building collapse, downed power lines and significant damage will occur. Vital infrastructure including communications towers and the electric grid will be damaged.
• Bridgeport OES has requested we prepare to provide communications assistance by updating and testing amateur radio paths of communications.  This means we will test local and distant repeaters, as well as contacting other amateur radio operators on VHF and UHF simplex.   
• DO NOT DEPLOY DURING THE STORM.  Our operations, if requested, will begin after the storm has passed as an emergency backup communications relay.  During the storm take shelter and preserve your equipment from wind damage.  Wire antennas should be lowered and batteries should be charged.  Store extra water.
• Since it is likely some of our high-level repeaters may be knocked out, so it is probably a good idea to find a high level location where you would have greater success and remain in contact with Net Control on simplex (AV1 – 146.580) so that you can act as a relay.
• Please make a contact on the repeater you are testing.  Repeater contacts can be made with other GBARC Members and net control. Please record the signal report given to you, not the signal report you gave to the other station.  If you can activate a repeater but were unable to get a contact notify net control and ask they meet you on that frequency.  
• When you have concluded you can make additional contacts on VHF simplex (146.520), UHF simplex (446.000). .  Do not record contacts made with other GBARC members or net control.
• After you have concluded your survey, contact N1DID on AV1 to report your findings, and then standby for the exercise de-brief on the GBARC Repeater System.

GBARC officers have identified the most likely repeaters we can use to route messages out of our area., Please use this chart to prepare your radio channels and map out your contact strategy.  So we can evaluate the best strategies we have devised a point system based on power, antenna gain and distance. 

The exercise concludes at 1100 Saturday at which time we will debrief on the GBARC repeaters.  The debrief will last for approximately 30 minutes.

October 3rd ARES SET

Tomorrow, Saturday October 3rd, we will conduct a drill for Statewide ARES Simulated Emergency Test.  The timeline is: 

1. 0915 - GBARC will activate the net on our local repeater system.  Please check in.  We will use the club callsign WA1RJI for the SET
2. 1000 - GBARC Members will send the MARS SWEAT message (See Below)
3. 1100 - Our local net will conclude (there will be other activities for leadership and net control)
4. 1200 - The SET is over 

MARS SWEAT MESSAGE FORMAT

GBARC Instructions

If you are not Winlink enabled you will pass this information to Net Control when asked. If you have Winlink and can send messages using the local VHF or remote HF nodes, inform Net Control that you will be doing so we don't duplicate. 

For a voice radio response Net Control will ask you to provide a simplified response to this information.  Simply say: “Line 2 , Line 20 , all else is Normal”.  IF there is a REAL change in status, please inform net control (none is anticipated.)  Your voice message will be forwarded to CT State via Winlink.

If you are sending your own message via Winlink, please address your message to CTSMARRL, K1DFS, W8ZY, N1DID, W1LAG. and AI1V  Please mark your message "Reply Requested".  The message body should be:

1)  009001
2)  yourtown
3)  CT
4)  NORMAL
5)  NORMAL
6)  NORMAL
7)  NORMAL
8)  NORMAL
9)  NORMAL
10)  NORMAL
11)  NORMAL
12)  NORMAL
13)  NORMAL
14)  NORMAL
15)  NORMAL
16)  NONE
17)  NORMAL
18)  NORMAL
19)  AMATEUR
20)  your callsign

April Simulated Emergency Test - 10am April 25th

On April 25th beginning at 10am we will hold our first Simulated Emergency Drill.  During this drill we will simulate traffic from various locations in and around the city of Bridgeport so that we can understand our role during an emergency more easily.  During the drill members will simulate being stationed to handle communications from the following city departments:

Please note that traffic flow is not cast in stone and that any function can both generate or receive messages.  This table is only a guideline.

To participate please prepare by doing the following:

• Look over the list of roles (or make one up)
• Let Emily N1DID know of the role you will fill.  If you want to assist a pre-designated role let that person know as well.
• Research the role – for example, a shelter manager will have many, many concerns (shelter, food, animal control, medical concerns), where other roles like Sanitation will have limited roles (providing services.)
• Learn what that department may need (sanitation trucks need fuel, shelters need food, pet food, and – well – everything!) and what kind of messages they will respond to.

For additional information please refer to the presentation "April Simulated Emergency Test"