[South Florida DX Association] Hams lend a helping hand

[Esteban Romagni]

Hams lend a helping hand

Amateur ham radio enthusiasts are playing an unusual but important role in
tsunami relief work, reports SHONALI MUTHALALY



When four amateur radio operators headed to the Andaman and Nicobar islands
a few weeks ago, armed with only basic equipment, backpacks and sun blocks,
they had no idea that their fun hobby would soon become the islands' only
lifeline.

"They went because it's a `high value' country for hams (amateur radio
operators) since you need special permission from the Government to operate
there," says Gopal Madhavan, an avid ham and one of the members of the
governing council of the Amateur Radio Society of India. "The last time a
ham operated in the Andamans was about 25 years ago."

The team, which came from across India, left Chennai on December 3 on their
`DXpedition' (basically ham slang for an expedition to any foreign country).
"They met here for a cup of tea before they left... There was a great amount
of enthusiasm," says Gopal, carefully tuning his buzzing radio, alive with
their voices crackling all the way from the islands. "They went to Port
Blair, set up the equipment - all DXpeditions carry radios and dismantled
antennas, which can be set up later with guy ropes - and contacted about
35,000 hams across the world."

Then, the earthquake began, followed by tidal waves, which swept over the
small islands.

"They were actually in operation when the tremors began. Bharthi, the team
leader, was talking to an Australian on the radio. He says her voice
suddenly rose by a few octaves and she yelled `tremor'. Then, her radio went
dead."

The islands were devastated by the quake and crashing waves. Phones died,
the electricity went out and life in Andaman and Nicobar came to a stunned
halt. On the airwaves too, there was a loud silence, as hams across the
world held their breath, wondering whether the team had survived. However,
about two hours later, unbelievably, they were back on the air.

"Every other form of communication was down. They were the only link from
the Andamans to the mainland for several hours after the disaster," says
Gopal, adding that the tsunamis had engulfed the island, paralysing all
machinery and communication systems. The ham radio however, which was
operating from a tower, was in working order, although the team did have to
scavenge for batteries to get it operating again since it had been running
on electricity.

In the tradition of hams, the team stayed on to help, the DXpedition was
converted into an emergency network and hams from across the world,
especially India, swung into action. Two more people headed to the islands
to support the emergency network, and with help from the Indian Army, which
is providing the hams with food, camping and batteries, the station on Port
Blair continues to operate, while another station has been set up at Car
Nicobar, which has been practically obliterated by the catastrophe.



Pics: by K.V. Srinivasan

Rising to the occasion: Gopal Madhavan

Hams have time and again proved useful in situations like this where
communication lines are down and emergency services have their hands full.
"The police have to concentrate on law and order at this point, while the
Army and emergency services have specific roles to play. Roles they cannot
really deviate from because they have so much work to do," says Gopal.

He says they are often called upon by the Government to lend a helping hand
since they are a mobile, usually well-connected, civilian group. Hams can
set up radio stations even from their cars, travel around affected areas,
identify people who need help and radio the police or hospitals. They can
also mobilise men and materials since they have a vast network of millions
of people from all walks of life, which covers the world. Port Blair, for
instance, has just asked for 12 doctors so the hams are calling hospitals
for help. "And while we co-ordinate from here, the ham control station in
Delhi is talking to the Government to see if they can spare doctors," says
Gopal.

Right now the main concern of the Andaman team is to find missing people.
"We are getting calls from all over the world from people who are worried
about friends and relatives," says Gopal. The teams in the islands field
these calls, ask where the missing person was last seen and send people out
to look for them. "However, with disasters like this, it is extremely
difficult to find people since the tendency is to flee. What we can say
is... well... if someone's dead and the body's been found," says Gopal. "We
then radio back the news so that relatives are informed. (pause) That's been
happening a lot."

Meanwhile, in Tamil Nadu, although the State Government has said they have
the situation under control, hams from across South India are being
mobilised anyway, to help in whatever ways they can. They have established
stations in Vellankani, Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Kanyakumari, Pondicherry
and Thanjavur and have also set up control stations in the bigger cities,
like Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata and Delhi. Gopal mans the Chennai station.
His role is to co-ordinate rescue efforts and help transfer information,
since most of the emergency ham stations work on batteries to save power and
use long wire antennas, generally tied to a tree, and are hence relatively
feeble. "Mobilising people has taken a while," says Gopal, "We have to find
people with diesel cars because petrol vehicles don't work in water. We need
people who drive Scorpios or Mahindra jeeps so they can travel with all the
ham equipment and supplies."

In Sri Lanka too, the hams have moved to the East Coast, which has been
devastated. Since there are very few hams there, hams from India are now
being mobilised to travel to the island. Meanwhile, the radio waves have
been inundated by people calling in to offer help. "Hams worldwide are
getting involved. The Canadian hams are in the process of sending blankets,
bed sheets and cooking utensils," says Gopal, "Everybody's offering aid.
Everybody wants to help."

Disaster management

In Gujarat, for 10 days after the 2001 earthquake, hams were the only people
who could communicate effectively. A number of them drove straight to
Gujarat when they heard about the tragedy, using car batteries to power
their radios so they could call for help whenever they found victims or
unclaimed bodies.

Every time there's a cyclone, an air crash or disasters in open fields where
communication is difficult, hams are called upon for help since their mobile
radio systems always work. Often, one ham is stationed at the district
collector's office, just so he can talk to the authorities.

Over the years, many hams have lost their lives when serving during
disasters. Deepa, a young lady who went to Gujarat to help out, picked up a
disease there and died. More recently, a Sri Lankan ham, who was in Iraq on
a peace keeping mission as part of the UN group for communications, was shot
dead.

Hamstrung

Although hams have helped the government a number of times in emergency
situations, red tapism is slowly choking amateur radio as a hobby. The laws,
which were laid down in the days of the British Raj, are apparently
"ridiculously outdated" today. For instance, according to the law, a ham
can't leave home with his radio. Hence, ironically, every time they head out
to help with disaster management, they're actually breaking the law.

However, last month, the Home Department and Ministry of Communication had a
meeting in Delhi with the Amateur Radio Society of India, which seemed to
finally acknowledge the efficacy of ham radio. The society submitted a paper
asking for changes and has been told that it's been studied and the
"departments concerned are looking into the issues."