ARES
Stan Broadway, N8BHL Ohio SEC, Delaware EC
Delaware SET this weekend Oct 15
This is pretty much my fault. After conversations with Sean Miller at the EMA and with our
group, we pretty much had Delaware’s SET organized… at least in thought mode. I was going to
write up the specifics and be ready for Joe and Craig to hand out the details October 4 morning.
But there arose an unannounced entire week of hurricane traffic which kept me without sleep
and time to breathe… so the plans never got produced. With thanks for your flexibility, our SET
is scheduled to go this Saturday at 10 AM. I would like as many operators as possible for this
event which we hope would parallel a real disaster event and provide you training that’s
worthwhile.
The story is that a tornado took out a sizable hunk of western Delaware City - with power and
cell outage, significant damage. That as you might expect, has captured the attention of
everybody with a red light on their roof. But shortly into the rescue efforts, word comes from
Scioto Township, “Hey, we just got really hammered out here… isn’t anybody going to come and
help?”
As you know, immediate damage assessment is a key to getting the right amount of help to the
right place… and that will be our job. So we’ll be mobile, probably simplex since repeaters are
down, and we’ll have a job to do! I hope to see you Saturday!!
ARES Ohio
Ohio SET 2022
Summary Report
The Ohio Simulated Emergency Test (SET) was conducted October 1, 2022 along with ARRL’s
national SET. At least 26 counties (of Ohio’s 88) participated with several others operating on
their own separate dates.
Responding to requests from numerous county Emergency Coordinators (EC) we reversed the
planning process this year. Typically, we design a scenario at the state level and pass it down to
the counties so that their response is more uniform. This year, we put the development and
planning of county exercises back to the EC’s who could design drills that fit their own location
or needs. We then offered our district level nets and the state station to coordinate all the
communication. It seemed to be accepted and worked well. Exercises ranged from haz-mat and
power outages to simulated events kicked off by the actual passage of Hurricane Ian into the
Ohio Valley. Some groups practiced portable station setup.
The Ohio EMA’s ARES-Auxcomm station, W8SGT, was in operation handing over 45 messages
and reports from various counties and stations. W8SGT was in operation on the 3.902 SSB
frequency, the digital frequency of 3854.5 taking digital messages directly, as well as DMR,
Fusion, and Winlink V/UHF frequencies. OHDEN, the digital statewide network, did not
participate but did run an evening net on that date.
Licking County held two nets, one for SET and another “fox hunt” net to find a rogue operator.
Cuyahoga county managed to participate while operators were actually working
communications for a large public service event. Jefferson County operators went to the field
where each operator set up a portable station. The locations included a soccer field, shelter,
EOC and ARES Command Center. A couple Ohio Districts had nearly all counties online- District
9 and District 10. We looked good in front of several EMA Directors, including Mahoning. Frank
Sole reports, “Thanks for being there. It was great being able to pass traffic to the Columbus
EOC. Our local EMA rep (yes, they participated in a major way this year for the first time in a long
time) was very impressed that we had a direct voice connection with Columbus EOC. You helped
us look good! There was some confusion on the availability of W8SGT and OHDEN this year.
Hope we can make adjustments on this for next year.”
All counties are able to conduct emergency exercises during the year and count them as SET but
25 counties participated October 1. Each county submits two reports to the ARRL online; a
performance score is published next year. For 2021’s SET, Ohio ranked number 2 in the nation,
and we hope to uphold the tradition.
Things that worked well: The EOC amateur station performed with excellence. Our ability to
connect across many different bands and modes shows the capability that can be used when
normal paths are broken. For the counties that exercised, messages were sent in some cases by
new hams who had never done this type of activity. It was fun to hear them learn and become
proficient. We received one message digitally from W8OMR, the Ohio Military Reserve station
which was participating in a concurrent exercise involving MARS and military operatives. This
shows our ability to maintain communications with those organizations.
Things that didn’t: OHDEN opted not to operate during that date. The NTS (Ohio’s traffic system)
traditionally has not participated and was not heard from this year again. Our manpower to
staff the EOC station is light, we need to recruit more trained operators and get them state
access.
Things to improve: I would still like to increase the number of active counties on the specific
date. It is also important that these exercises be more than just a “check in net” and actually
deploy operators as many of our counties did.
I want to sincerely thank you all for your support and enthusiasm. Since 2014 we have worked
to make Ohio one of the strongest ARES states in the country, and our stature with the Ohio
EMA as a viable communications resource is top notch. That’s due to your participation and
willingness to get involved. I encourage you to continue to keep ARES strong in Ohio! I’m proud
of you!
Amateur Radio is more than
a hobby- it becomes an
important service when
other forms of
communication fail. It’s up
to all of us to stay ready,
stay trained, and stay
available. We could be
required on a moment’s
notice.
Delaware County ARES is part of the
national ARRL program. We rely on
our volunteers. We operate during
several large public events including
the national-level Ironman
competition.
We hold a radio net on the 145.19
repeater (no tone) on the second
Thursday of every month at 8PM.
We hold a training meeting on the
first Thursday of every month at 7:30
usually at the Red Cross building. All
amateurs are invited!
For information, contact Stan, N8BHL
the Delaware County Emergency
Coordinator, or Joe, K8MP or Craig,
W8CR.