Subj : Amateur Radio Newsline (A
To   : All
From : Daryl Stout
Date : Fri Jan 10 2020 01:53 pm

Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2202, for Friday, January 10th, 2020

Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2202, with a release date of
Friday, January 10th, 2020, to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a QST. An earthquake rattles Puerto Rico. Floods
besiege Indonesia - and SOTA operators scale new heights of public
service in Australia.

All this and more, as Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2202,
comes your way right now.

**

BILLBOARD CART


**

EARTHQUAKE RATTLES PUERTO RICO

PAUL/ANCHOR: We begin this week with the latest earthquake to strike
Puerto Rico. Christian Cudnik, K0STH, brings us the details.

CHRISTIAN: As Newsline went to production, the American Red Cross had
deployed disaster workers to the areas hardest hit by the 6.4 magnitude
quake that struck Puerto Rico early Tuesday, January 7. Power was slowly
being restored islandwide after a blackout was undertaken for safety
reasons. Government-run shelters were housing hundreds of victims and
received support from the Red Cross. The Red Cross was also seeking
amateur radio operators to step up and volunteer. Angel Santana, WP3GW,
the ARRL's public information officer in Puerto Rico, said the Puerto
Rico Emergency Management Agency's EOC had been activated. Newsline
will continue to follow this developing story.

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Christian Cudnik, K0STH.

PAUL/ANCHOR:  Late Thursday, Oscar Resto KP4RF, the League's Puerto Rico
Section Manager, told the ARRL that full power restoration was at least
several days away.

(CNN, RED CROSS WEBSITE, ANGEL SANTANA WP3GW)

**

FLOOD-STRICKEN INDONESIA RELIES ON HAMS

PAUL/ANCHOR: Hams have also been active since floods struck the Indonesian
capital on New Years Day. Robert Broomhead, VK3DN, has those details.

ROBERT: In Indonesia, amateur radio operators in the flood-besieged area
of Greater Jakarta, have been providing support in a variety of ways
afflicted residents, including some of their own members of ORARI, the
Indonesian Organisation of Amateur Radio Operators. According to accounts
from Dani YB2TJV, Disaster Communication Coordinator for IARU Region 3
and Irsan YC0OST (YC ZERO OST) of ORARI, ORARI South Jakarta was among the
regional centres throughout Indonesia to receive a Radiogram from the
Central ORARI office seeking Disaster Management Communication Support.
Hams were asked to assist in the evacuation of local residents to
emergency shelters. The flooding had begun on the first of the year with
power outages and mudslides in the capital region hampering the search for
missing persons. In addition to emergency communications detail, hams also
assisted with fundraising on the 3rd and 4th of the month to help victims,
some of whom were their own fellow hams. Hams helped distribute the cash
contributions along with household necessities.

According to media accounts, officials were calling the floods the area's
worst since 2007.

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Robert Broomhead, VK3DN.

(THE GUARDIAN, DANI YB2TJV, Irsan YC0OST)

**

SOTA OPERATORS TURN TALENTS TOWARD BUSH FIRE CRISIS

PAUL/ANCHOR: As the bush fire crisis worsens in Australia, groups of
highly specialized amateurs turn their talents toward the crisis.
Jason Daniels, VK2LAW, tells us about these operators who are normally
found on high summits.

JASON: In Australia, they're familiar to one another largely as
activators and chasers on SOTA summits. Now they are part of the
burgeoning roll call of well-known hams supporting emergency response
agencies battling the historic bush fires:

WADE: So we've got the two Andrews, VK1DA, and VK1AD. We've got Compton
VK2HRX, Matt, VK1MA, Tony VK1VIC/VK2VIC as well. And Graham, VK1GVC, who
has been helping us out in the Fire Control centres as well and myself,
Wade, VK1MIC.

JASON: That was SOTA activator Wade Smith, VK1MIC, a volunteer in the
Australian Capital Territory VK1, and on the local committee for the
state WICEN Group. He and so many other summit chasers and activators
are supporting emergency responders by harnessing the creative
problem-solving they use on the summits, along with stamina, topographic
acumen and the ability to communicate concisely.

WADE: It's a credit to the relationships and to the friendships born
through this section of the hobby that we were able to not only step up
but we were asked. I think a lot of skills that come through SOTA were
seen and recognized for what they were - an asset to the emergency
services that we were supporting.

JASON: They are volunteers of all ages, deployed in rotation to sit with
Rural Fire Service communicators, or assist with logging, relaying weather
and welfare, restoring repeaters - even cooking meals. If they weren't
part of the emergency services before, they are now - and it puts them on
a very different kind of summit.

WADE: It's a horrific tragedy, but we're also seeing the very best.

For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jason Daniels, VK2LAW.
--- SBBSecho 3.10-Win32
* Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - tbolt.synchro.net (801:1/2)
� Synchronet � Temple of Doom BBS - tod.eothnet.com

You are viewing proxied material from bbs.kd3.us. The copyright of proxied material belongs to its original authors. Any comments or complaints in relation to proxied material should be directed to the original authors of the content concerned. Please see the disclaimer for more details.