From: jmaynard@oac.hsc.uth.tmc.edu (Jay Maynard)
Newsgroups: rec.radio.amateur.misc
Subject: Re: *146.52 WB1GOF signs in Massachusetts (long, but good!)
Date: 6 Sep 1992 05:59:07 GMT
Organization: UT Health Science Center Houston

In article <7900@public.BTR.COM> grady@btr.BTR.COM (Grady Ward  grady@btr.com) writes:
>Amateur frequencies help in communications emergencies, _not_
>for emergency communications.  The distinction is when you can
>reasonably _anticipate_ the need for a certain level of emergency
>communication then the public services agencies ought to professionally
>staff and fund radio systems using their own frequencies.

I've been watching you blather about this for a week or so now, and have kept
my (admittedly itchy) finger off of the F key.

No more. (he says as he puts his paramedic hat on)

The public service bands are fine for routine, day-to-day operations, and
have enough left over in spare capacity, for the most part, to handle the odd
minor problem. When you get to something like Hurricane Andrew, the system
_is_not_designed_or_expected_to_cope_. The traffic levels jump dramatically,
often for days at a time, and sometimes much longer. Emergency services define
"disaster" as "any event which overwhelms local resources". Often, those
resources are communications.

Time after time, when disaster strikes, public safety agencies discussing how
improve their response say that their communications didn't work, either
because they didn't have enough frequencies to handle their level of traffic
or because the radios are incompatible with each other. This situation *will*
*not* *change*, no matter how much money gets thrown at the problem, and no
matter how much the agencies involved wish it to happen. There are simply too
few available frequencies, and too little training.

I can speak from personal experience here: I serve as Communications Officer
for the League City (Texas) Volunteer Emergency Medical Service. I am
responsible for training my people in how to communicate on the radio well. I
do my dead-level best to accomplish that goal. When all hell breaks loose,
however, it breaks down. The reason is simple: they're medics first, and radio
operators second, if that. They're out there, trying to deal with a difficult
situation, applying limited resources, and they *don't* *have* *time* to di
things according to the proper procedures. The same applies in the fire
service (where I also have experience) and in law enforcement as well. When
I'm acting as a paramedic, the radio gets about fourth or fifth consideration,
behind a lot of other things, like the welfare of my patient.

Enter the ham. He's valuable precisely because he has strengths where everyone
else has weaknesses: He's concerned primarily with getting the message
through, and the training and experience to do it properly, in the shortest
time possible and with the highest accuracy. I can give him a message to pass
along and know that it will get where I need it to go.

>Vigilantism on amateur bands, even with the greatest intentions, doesn't
>seem to me to be at the core of Amateur radio.

VIGILANTISM??!?!! How, exactly, did you arrive at so completely and obviously
WRONG a term for a valuable service??

Have you ever worked with a public service agency as a communicator, either
amateur or as a member of that community?

I can tell you this: Bleat about ARES/RACES all you want to...but I suggest,
if you really feel that way, that you not be in League City when disaster
strikes: we'll be depending on amateur communications.
-- 
Jay Maynard, EMT-P, K5ZC, PP-ASEL | Never ascribe to malice that which can
jmaynard@oac.hsc.uth.tmc.edu      | adequately be explained by stupidity.
 "Keep in mind that Amateur Radio As We Know It Today will cease to exist
            at midnight tonight." -- Dave Newkirk, WJ1Z
Newsgroups: rec.radio.amateur.misc