[TxHam] NWS Comm Plan for IKE in North Central Texas

[David J]

>From Gary Woodall (NWS) via Will Scott (Azle Fire Chief):

***
Greetings -

An update from the NWS Skywarn amateur radio team.  Your amateur radio 
coordinators will be able to assist with the technicalities.

Regards,
Gary W.

#####

Fort Worth NWS office SKYWARN radio desk operators will activate for 
Hurricane Ike as required by the NWS.   This will include operators for 
back-up communications with coastal NWS offices via HF radio as the 
hurricane impacts the coast.  We will schedule operators for NWS Fort 
Worth SKYWARN spotter radio frequencies and linked systems.

Since this may become a wide area event with reports needed across the 
North Texas CWA, the NWS radio desk may be unable to monitor all active 
local spotter nets.  If this occurs, the NWS SKYWARN radio desk 
operators plan to use the following alternative or expanded means of 
relaying spotter reports.  Please share this with your SKYWARN spotter 
groups and coordinators.  It may be advisable to establish the best 
means of contact to the NWS when your net is activated.

The NWS office SKYWARN team will also publish this information on the
team web site, http://wx5fwd.org/

Primary or initial NWS office SKYWARN radio communications as 
activations start will be...

-  Direct or linked repeater radio communications.  This is the usual 
method used for most SKYWARN events.  The SKYWARN repeater list is on
the NWS FWD web site.  http://www.srh.noaa.gov/fwd/repeat.html

-  VoIP via EchoLink or IRLP.  Used for areas that we cannot reach 
directly or via other radio links.  Again, this is our "normal" SKYWARN 
operations for our more distant counties.  Refer to
http://wx5fwd.org/files/Accessing_WX5FWD_VoIP.html

Secondary or alternate methods:

As the size and scope of the activations grow across the CWA, the NWS 
SKYWARN radio operations may shift to monitoring the following wide
coverage repeaters and VoIP systems for reports.  Liaison radio 
operators may need to relay reports from local nets to the NWS via these
repeaters or links.  You may want to plan and test which methods 
work for you area.

-  North and North West of DFW: 145.490 PL85.4 (Roston wide area
repeater)

-  North-East or East of DFW: RAILS Linked repeaters

-  Waco/Temple/Killeen and surrounding areas: 147.140 via Bell county 
wide area repeater EchoLink

-  DFW metroplex will likely be monitored direct on local SKYWARN 
frequencies by NWS operators.

-  WX5FWD VoIP conference on EchoLink and IRLP, *WX5FWD* (372418).
Reference the Accessing WX5FWD VoIP link above.

- NWS E-Mail or Web form spotter reports.
http://www.srh.weather.gov/fwd/sptreport.html

-  HF Radio.  Primary use is for backup communications with coastal 
offices during events such as Hurricanes. This is unlikely to be useful 
inside the central/north Texas, except via relayed reports via remote HF

stations.  HF frequencies and nets will vary depending on conditions, 
but will likely be on established HF weather nets or NWS assigned 
frequencies.

For additional information:
http://wx5fwd.org/