[SFDXA] Amateur Radio Provides Critical Communication in Colorado Flooding Response

[Bill]

Amateur Radio Provides Critical Communication in Colorado Flooding Response

09/13/2013

[Updated Sep 14, 2220 UTC] More than five dozen Amateur Radio Emergency 
Service (ARES) volunteers have deployed in and around flood-stricken 
counties of Colorado, providing critical communication for Red Cross 
shelters and state and local emergency operation centers. Recent heavy 
rains have caused veritable mountainside tsunamis that have caused 
rivers and streams to overflow their banks, ravaged roads and property 
and displaced an undetermined number of residents. At least three people 
are known to have died. ARRL Colorado Section Manager Jack Ciaccia, 
WMØG, says that with power cut off to affected communities and many cell 
telephone towers along the Big Thompson River toppled by the flooding, 
ham radio is providing medical and health-and-welfare traffic between 
evacuation centers and the EOCs.

“Every EOC is being staffed by ARES people,” Ciaccia told ARRL. “Almost 
every evacuation center has an ARES communicator, doing either voice or 
packet communications between EOCs and shelters.”

The isolated towns of Estes Park, Lyons, and Jamestown were or still are 
relying solely on ham radio for contact with the outside. Jamestown has 
since been evacuated. “Everybody was huddled into the high school 
there,” Ciaccia told ARRL. He was in contact with the mayor there and 
trying to get the community needed resources as soon as possible. Hams 
in Estes Park have been working out of the EOC in the Town Hall, which 
is on high ground. “There’s no place to go. Everything’s flooded,” 
Ciaccia said. “The only ham in Lyons was working out of an evacuation 
center at the local elementary school.” He said the National Guard has 
been relocating some evacuees, as the shelter has become overcrowded.

On Saturday, September 14, US Congressman Cory Gardner (R-4) visited the 
state emergency operation center to express his appreciation to the 
Amateur Radio operators responding to the historic flooding disaster. 
Rep Gardner asked Colorado Section Emergency Coordinator Robert Wareham, 
NØESQ, to extend his thanks to all ARES members staffing positions in 
the field as well.

Boulder County has deployed miniature drone aircraft carrying Amateur TV 
cameras to survey the affected, more remote regions, for now to spot 
individuals who may need to be rescued. “We’re still in a 
search-and-rescue mode,” Ciaccia said, “not really in a 
damage-assessment mode.”

Ciaccia said the drones — a fixed-wing aircraft and a hybrid 
gas/electric-powered helicopter — have been transmitting ATV video via 
UHF to the ground and simultaneously recording the video on a memory 
stick. The helicopter can remain in the air for more than 5 hours at a 
clip, recording images for officials at the EOC to evaluate. Ciaccia 
said Boulder County Emergency Coordinator Al Bishop, KØARK, owns 
Reference Technology, the company providing the drones.

Eyes and Ears

Ciaccia said that during the past year the Boulder County ARES team 
created the Mountain Emergency Radio Network (MERN) on its own time and 
money and put up two repeaters — one at Allenspark and another in Gold 
Hill. “The intent was to start educating people in the mountain regions 
to become hams,” Ciaccia said. Some 65 individuals have gotten their 
licenses, and the team provided each with a radio. “Those radios and 
those people — they became the eyes and ears for their communities,” 
Ciaccia explained.

As power was lost, the only remaining means of communication were the 
two repeaters operating on propane-powered generators. “The system 
worked,” Ciaccia added, “and we were able to utilize it for emergency 
communication purposes.” Those communities have since been evacuated.

Threat Remains

News media accounts citing the state Office of Emergency Management say 
19 Colorado counties remain under a high threat of flooding. These 
include Boulder, Arapahoe, Weld, Park, Jefferson, Larimer, Clear Creek, 
Adams, Douglas, Broomfield, Gilpin, Denver, Logan, Morgan, Washington, 
El Paso, Teller, Pueblo and Elbert.

State authorities are warning residents in the hard-hit counties to stay 
off the road. Interstate 25 from the Wyoming line to Denver has been 
closed, along with part of Interstate 70.

The Colorado Section Facebook page includes updates on the ARES activation.

http://www.arrl.org/news/amateur-radio-provides-critical-communication-in-colorado-flooding-response