[Wma-ares] Fwd: The ARES® Letter for March 18, 2026

Thu Mar 19 10:43:10 EDT 2026

If you are not subscribed to this, you should be...

This issue contains an excellent write-up of the recent blizzard courtesy
of Rob, KD1CY.  He includes several WMA ARES members in his report.

There is also an interesting example of a Simulated Emergency Test recently
held in Florida.  We will begin planning for our SET sometime in early
summer.  If you are interested in helping create and plan our SET, please
watch for an email requesting volunteers.

73 de Chuck, WS1L
Amateur Radio Emergency Service ®
Section Emergency Coordinator
Western Massachusetts
chandlerusm at gmail.com

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: ARRL <memberlist at arrl.org>
Date: Wed, Mar 18, 2026 at 5:53 PM
Subject: The ARES® Letter for March 18, 2026
To: <chandlerusm at gmail.com>

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[image: The ARES® Letter]
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Editor: Rick Palm, K1CE <k1ce at arrl.net> - March 18, 2026

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*In This Issue:*

   - ARES® Briefs, Links <#m_-2554998251115185521_Bookmark_A45CFF0A1>
   - SKYWARN Special Event This Month
   <#m_-2554998251115185521_Bookmark_A9EDA1170>
   - Blizzard of 2026 Leaves a Historic Mark on Southeast New England
   <#m_-2554998251115185521_Bookmark_AAF7A319C>
   - Amateur Radio Operators at the Honolulu EOC During Severe Weather
   Activation <#m_-2554998251115185521_Bookmark_ACDF915C5>
   - Washington State Ham Receives Search and Rescue Award
   <#m_-2554998251115185521_Bookmark_AFD1373FE>
   - Simple, Focused, Effective SETs
   <#m_-2554998251115185521_Bookmark_A76998DDE>
   - National Traffic System Update, Traffic Handler Resources
   <#m_-2554998251115185521_Bookmark_AB05B753F>
   - ARES® Resources <#m_-2554998251115185521_Bookmark_AE974EF30>
   - Support ARES®: Join ARRL <#m_-2554998251115185521_Bookmark_A319F549D>

*ARES® Briefs, Links*

Join ARRL Education Specialist Wayne Greene, KB4DSF, on the next *On the
Air Live* as he discusses how to build a rugged 2-meter VHF ground-plane
antenna from simple, easy-to-find wire—no exotic parts, no machine shop
required. “This isn’t a fragile attic experiment; we’ll design it stout
enough for real outdoor duty and then take it a step further with an
unconventional deployment method that gets the antenna up to 50+
feet—without a tower," he said. The episode will be live on the ARRL's Learning
Center
<https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTc5OTM3JnA9MSZ1PTUyMDUwMzQ5NSZsaT00MjA4MTg3MA/index.html>
on March 24 at 8 PM Eastern. Preregistration is required and can be
accomplished on the Learning Center.

*2026 National Hurricane Conference Amateur Radio Workshop *-- Amateur
radio will be represented at the 2026 National Hurricane Conference
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to be held at the end of the month in Orlando, Florida. The workshop will
be conducted at the conference and livestreamed.The conference theme
is *improving
hurricane preparedness*.

Two amateur radio sessions will be conducted on Tuesday, March 31st, from
1:30 until 3:15 PM ET and from 3:30 until 5:00 PM. Each presenter will give
an overview of their respective group, and specifically how their group
responded to the significant hurricanes over the past year. Here is the
session breakdown:

NHC Session #1 – 1:30-3:15 PM: Bob Robichaud, VE1MBR, from the Canadian
Hurricane Centre will present on hurricane meteorological topics and a 2025
hurricane season review. He will speak on Canadian Hurricane Centre
operations. National Hurricane Center staff will present an *Overview of
Amateur Radio Collaboration During Hurricanes*. Julio Ripoll, WD4R, will
present on hurricane center station WX4NHC operations. Bobby Graves,
KB5HAV, manager of the Hurricane Watch Net (HWN), will give an overview of
net activity and plans.

NHC Session #2 – 3:30-5:00 PM: Rob Macedo, KD1CY, will present on the VoIP
Hurricane Net and best practices in SKYWARN for tropical systems. Bill
Feist, WB8BZH, and Joe Bassett, W1WCN, will present a SATERN (Salvation
Army Team Emergency Radio Network) overview. ARRL Emergency Communicatons
and Field Services Director Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, will give an ARRL update.

Amateur radio presentations will be recorded and posted to YouTube. They
will also be livestreamed on YouTube livestream
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.

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*SKYWARN Special Event This Month*

Young radio amateurs dedicated to weather spotting, emergency
communication, and community education will operate special event station
NØA for the next two weeks to promote severe weather awareness. NØA will be
operated March 15 – 29 at various times — day and night — as time permits,
using SSB, and FT8/FT4 on 80, 40, 20, 17, 15, 12, and 10 meters, as well as
FT8 on 160 and 30 meters. For operators without HF access, SKYWARN Youth
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invites check-ins to their weekly nets on Sundays — March 15, 22, and 29 —
at 7:30 PM Central, via multiple repeaters and VoIP networks. All check-ins
to those nets will be officially added to the NØA special event log. “Being
prepared and establishing situational awareness during severe weather
events is crucial and will help you and your family to stay safe,” said
SKYWARN Youth Net Manager Caleb Sfair, KEØFOE. “Our goal with this special
event station is to educate the amateur radio community about the dangers
of severe weather and the importance of being prepared.” All amateur radio
operators are encouraged to spread the word and participate in this effort
to strengthen weather safety networks worldwide. More information
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is available.

The Pennsylvania Auxiliary Communications Service
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(PA ACS) was activated to provide “eyes and ears” ground truth snowfall
reports during the state’s late January snowstorm. PA ACS members who are
registered with SERVPA
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received a phone call, email, and/or text message from Travis Best, W3TMB,
Commonwealth ACS Officer, requesting reports of snowfall amounts and other
significant information during the storm. PA ACS activated the Pennsylvania
Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC)
amateur radio station KB3NIA in Harrisburg.

In Centre County, Pennsylvania, the county ACS activated to forward local
and regional snow and temperature reports directly to the National Weather
Service (NWS) State College Weather Forecast Office (WFO). The county ACS
received reports from Huntingdon and Blair counties, in addition to Centre
County, which received 7 to 15 inches of snow. The Clearfield County ACS
activated Sunday, January 25, to collect local snow reports for county
emergency management and to forward to PEMA and the NWS State College
WFO.— *Blair
ARES Alert*, March 2026 [newsletter of the Blair County, Pennsylvania ARES
program]

*A Coalition for Readiness: The ARRL Los Angeles Section’s LAXNORTHEAST
<https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTc5OTM3JnA9MSZ1PTUyMDUwMzQ5NSZsaT00MjA4MTg3OA/index.html>,
the Emcomm Training Organization
<https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTc5OTM3JnA9MSZ1PTUyMDUwMzQ5NSZsaT00MjA4MTg3OQ/index.html>
(ETO), and partners announced the 2026 TSUNAMI Exercise*. Amateur radio
operators are the backbone of disaster communication, and staying sharp
requires realistic, hands-on practice. Supported by a strong partnership
between LAXNORTHEAST, ETO, and many more community groups, the 2026 TSUNAMI
Exercise is an international drill specifically designed to test and
enhance collective capabilities in a simulated, high-stress environment.

Rooted deeply in community preparedness, the exercise will walk operators
through a severe earthquake and subsequent tsunami/flood warning scenario.
Participants will be challenged to complete eight core Winlink tasks, which
emphasize precise data entry and the use of standardized ICS forms such as
the ICS-214 and ICS-213.

   - Dates: The exercise window opens March 19, 2026, at 0600 UTC and
   closes March 30, 2026, at 0600 UTC. Local groups are highly encouraged to
   pick specific dates within this window to run their nets.
   - Exercise ID: Accuracy is paramount! The Exercise ID must be entered
   exactly as “TSUNAMI” to ensure interoperability with automated mapping
   systems.
   - Get Started: The complete task list and instructions are available now
   <https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTc5OTM3JnA9MSZ1PTUyMDUwMzQ5NSZsaT00MjA4MTg3OA/index.html>.

A special thank you to the USGS for its fantastic encouragement of this
exercise. We look forward to seeing your check-ins on the board! —*Oliver
Dully, K6OLI, ARRL District Emergency Coordinator, LAXNORTHEAST, Los
Angeles, California*

*Blizzard of 2026 Leaves a Historic Mark on Southeast New England*

A severe blizzard left its mark on Southeast New England with massive
amounts of snow leaving vehicles and even plows stuck in the snow, damaging
winds gusts to hurricane force causing ~350,000 customers to lose power in
Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and some coastal flooding at the time of
high tide. The blizzard broke the state record for snowfall in Rhode Island
set by the Blizzard of ‘78 with 37.8” of snow in Providence. ARES-SKYWARN
nets across southern New England activated with the WX1BOX amateur radio
team to support the NWS Boston/Norton office, local and state emergency
management, and broadcast media with timely updates on this historic storm.

West Falmouth, Massachusetts [Photo courtesy of Marinna Martini, W1FX]

“We had ARES-SKYWARN nets activating on an every 1-2 hour basis, providing
snowfall, wind gust, wind damage and coastal flood reports,” said Rob
Macedo, KD1CY, Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator and
SKYWARN Coordinator. “The nets were very active with great participation
allowing a comprehensive situational awareness view for NWS, emergency
management and the media. We also interacted with many non-amateur radio
SKYWARN spotters via social media.” Reports of snowfall as high as 3 feet
as well as 43” in Tiverton, Rhode Island, and 41” in Fall River,
Massachusetts, were received from amateur radio and non-amateur radio
SKYWARN spotters. Macedo said his hometown of New Bedford recorded 37” of
snow. “At least a half dozen amateur radio and non-amateur radio SKYWARN
spotters reported snowfall totals in the city of New Bedford anywhere from
32.5” to 37”, Macedo said.

Amateur radio SKYWARN nets were active on over a dozen repeaters across
southern New England along with the New England amateur radio VoIP
reflector system, with snowfall, wind damage and wind gust reports. The
Amateur Radio Net plan for Massachusetts was sent into Massachusetts
Emergency Management in an ICS-205 to ESF-2 as part of a closer working
relationship with state emergency management. Well over 1,000 reports were
generated from these nets and shared with partner agencies and the media.
Blizzard conditions were met at numerous sites across southern New England.

*Eastern Massachusetts ARRL Section*

Eastern Massachusetts ARES was placed on stand-by on Sunday February 22 for
any partner agencies and to augment and enhance support for the
ARES-SKYWARN nets for participation. Eight different amateur service
repeaters had rolling nets on an hourly to two-hourly basis reporting the
rapidly accumulating snowfall as high as 4-5” per hour resulting in snow
accumulations of 1-3 feet with isolated higher amounts, storm damage from
the combination of wet snow and strong to damaging wind gusts, including
some beyond hurricane force.

Several hundred reports were generated from the nets. ARES coordinators and
net controllers staffed the nets for over 18 hours, including Terry Stader,
KA8SCP; Stu Solomon, W1SHS; Don Rolph, AB1PH; Tom Ulrich, KC1OCY; Jim
Palmer, KB1KQW; Patrick Mannion, W1PAC; Phil McNamara, N1XTB; Jeff Lehmann,
AJ1L; Frank O’Laughlin, WQ1O; along with several other net controls. In
addition to the ARES-SKYWARN activity, Cape Cod ARES members Chris Ranney,
WA1CMR, and Dennis Driscoll, N1DRN, deployed to support operations in the
town of Sandwich, Massachusetts, providing auxiliary communications between
their EOC and the shelter for the town.

*Rhode Island ARRL Section*

Through the efforts of Rhode Island SKYWARN Coordinator Wayne Burkett Sr.,
KA1VRF, and Bill Boyes, KB1G, Rhode Island SKYWARN stood up nets on the
NB1RI Rhode Island statewide linked repeater system for over an 18 hour
period, including during the overnight period Sunday, February 22, through
Monday morning. Reports were of downed trees and power lines, and rapidly
accumulating snow 4-5” per hour that had up to 3 feet of snow with isolated
higher amounts. Despite Rhode Island being a small state, several hundred
reports were generated via their nets.

*Connecticut ARRL Section*

Through the efforts of Roger Jeanfaivre, K1PAI, and Mary Duval, K1MTD, the
146.79 MHz Vernon repeater provided ARES-SKYWARN net coverage across
Hartford, Tolland, and Windham Counties with over a half dozen nets and
more than 100 reports of snowfall received with 1-2 feet of snow and some
reports of damage between wet snow and strong to damaging wind gusts in the
northeast region of the state.

*Western Massachusetts ARRL Section*

ARES-SKYWARN Net Coordinators and net control stations Charlie “Smitty”
Smith, KC1IKA; Ez Moralez, W1AE; Bob Meneguzzo, K1YO, and Rich Laviolette,
KC1AEO, ran nets every two hours Sunday evening and all day Monday. Al
Giguere Jr., KB1VNH, also supported efforts with spotter reports during the
nets. Over a hundred reports were generated with 6-12” of snow and isolated
higher amounts reported along with some pockets of tree and power line
damage and power outages.

Amateur radio received media attention on The Weather Channel several times
throughout the blizzard. Reporter Jim Cantore stated, “When we get all
these observations, it comes from SKYWARN spotters and amateur radio
operators because when people can’t communicate and the phone lines are
down, the amateur radio operators are all we got.” The WX1BOX
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web site has been updated with a *Post Blizzard Coordination Message*. One
more update may be provided by the end of March or early April. —*Rob
Macedo, KD1CY, ARRL Eastern Massachusetts Section Emergency Coordinator and
SKYWARN Coordinator*

*Amateur Radio Operators at the Honolulu EOC During Severe Weather
Activation*

On February 8–9, 2026, severe weather brought high winds, heavy rainfall,
flash flooding, power outages, and hazardous surf conditions across
Honolulu and the State of Hawaiʻi. Both Governor Josh Green and Honolulu
Mayor Rick Blangiardi issued emergency proclamations to mobilize resources
and protect public safety.

Amateur radio operators were activated inside the EOC in support of the
Department of Emergency Management (DEM), City and County of Honolulu.
Volunteer communicators reported in and stood ready to provide backup
communications should cellular or internet systems fail.

The amateurs participated in county and statewide briefings with Governor
Green, Maj. Gen. Stephen Logan, and Hawaii Emergency Management Agency
(HI-EMA) leadership. They joined statewide HF nets at 9:00 AM, 12:00 PM,
and 4:00 PM on 7.090 MHz (LSB). Hams updated and posted the ICS-205
Communications Plan on HawaiiARES.net
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for download and offline reference. They logged activity in the ICS-214
Unit Log. They also operated at KH6OCD on HF and VHF/UHF voice, monitored
repeaters, and utilized Winlink radio email on HF and VHF FM.

Radio traffic remained light as outages were quickly addressed through
coordinated efforts between city and state agencies, and utility partners.
Shelters and volunteers remained ready in case conditions worsened.

*Emergency Management Reserve Corps (EMRC)*

The Emergency Management Reserve Corps (EMRC) supports the community
through trained volunteers who serve either in field operations across
Oʻahu or as amateur radio communicators under RACES. Most RACES members are
also active in ARES, strengthening coordination between county and
statewide response efforts.

Deputy RACES Coordinator Michael Miller, KH6ML said: “It was encouraging to
work alongside such engaged and supportive leadership from the Department
(of Emergency Management). Dr. Randal Collins, Director, and Jennifer
Walter, Deputy Director, along with Douglas Tom and Jeff Spencer, clearly
understand how amateur radio strengthens resiliency and provides
independent communications capability. Their awareness of our role in a
larger grey or black sky event ensures RACES remains fully integrated into
emergency operations.”

*Operations and Coordination*

RACES Coordinator Mark Kaku, KH6LT, coordinated amateur radio operations
inside the EOC, ensuring continuous coverage throughout the activation. He
said, “Our goal is simple—be ready before we’re needed. We focus on
coverage, documentation, and coordination so that if primary systems fail,
we can immediately step in*.*”

*Prepared and Ready*

Systems were tested, nets were active, and documentation was completed. The
activation reinforced the value of having trained,
infrastructure-independent, amateur radio communicators embedded within
emergency management operations.

“Mahalo to all who staffed the EOC and supported from across the islands.”
--*Michael C. Miller, KH6ML, Deputy Coordinator, Radio Amateur Civil
Emergency Services (RACES), Department of Emergency Management, City and
County of Honolulu; ARRL Assistant Section Manager, Pacific Section*

*Washington State Ham Receives Search and Rescue Award*

Yakima County (Washington) Search and Rescue (SAR) recognized Jo Whitney,
KA7LJQ, with with an appreciation plaque by the county in recognition of 35
years of dedication to the county’s search and rescue organization.

Whitney was licensed in 1981, using her license to give back to the
community by joining Yakima County Emergency Management as part of the
local ARES group, and then Yakima SAR. In 1991, she took over as ARES EC
for Yakima County and has held the role ever since. She logged more hours
driving and operating the county mobile command post (MCP) than any other
SAR volunteer. She regularly staffs the Rescue Coordination Center and is
active in the SAR council that meets every month.

Whitney provides training and helps with the yearly SAR academy, both in
the classroom, and in the field. She is a member of the ARRL Diamond Club,
and Maxim Society. Scott Mitseff, KJ7AVQ, said “one of the things I admired
most about Whitney was that she was never too busy to help someone; whether
answering a question, programming a radio, or offering a piece of advice,
she always treated people with kindness and professionalism.”

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*Simple, Focused, Effective SETs*

Many Emergency Coordinators and emergency managers find that writing and
executing a Simulated Emergency Test (SET) is a daunting undertaking. The
ARRL West Central Florida Section is fortunate to have Chuck Johnston,
W4CWJ, who has written several SETs and participated in emergency
communications activities in Florida and other states. Recently, an SET
scenario consisted of a cascading power outage throughout the State of
Florida, resulting in the loss of all primary, alternate, and contingency
communications capabilities. Under the scenario, our 10 counties and
several volunteer organizations assisting in disasters (VOADs)
participated. For added interest, the theme of the SET was not announced
until the night before.

*Dark Start* was written to accomplish several section goals. Initially, we
needed to validate the MOU between the ARRL West Central Florida Section
and the owners of the multi-county NI4CE repeater system. This agreement
allows us to communicate with all ten counties in the West Central Florida
(WCF) Section. All counties can send and receive transmissions directly
from an Area Command center. This not only facilitates information arriving
in a timely manner, it avoids relaying information and possible
miscommunications.

Our SET scenario involved a cascading blackout caused by a fire at a
transformer station. The NI4CE system executed a roll-call for all
counties. Each county then returned to their own county system to activate
their ARES group, and report back to the Area Command Center using the
NI4CE system. Each county was tasked with reporting the number of
individuals participating, how many could operate on emergency power and
how many were willing to deploy. Although it was a simple drill, it was
very effective in pointing out areas that needed fortification before an
emergency arose.

Our second goal, since emergencies are not regular occurrences and many
ARES groups seldom experience emergency activation, was to provide ARES
members with needed training and review to keep skills and procedures
already learned fresh. SETs also introduce new members to the ARES
environment. This SET was simple to create and execute while reviewing
valuable lessons of importance and possibly lifesaving knowledge.

Another objective was building familiarity and expertise between ARES
groups and key management positions during emergency conditions. During the
SET several of our Section’s ECs gathered at the Desoto County Emergency
Operations Center and formed the Peace River Coordinating Group. The group
included several Emergency Management directors and VOAD members who joined
to observe the exercise.

During a hot wash immediately following the SET, several members expressed
concerns about ham speak: many from the coordinating group advocated
instead for plain-talk. ECs and other ARES leaders were asked for plans and
protocols for contacting ARES groups for sudden activation. Another
question arose about communications with CERT groups: many use GMRS radios.
How they can be used to a greater extent in emergencies was a topic of
discussion.

The aim of any SET is to practice emergency procedures and test operators
and equipment. All west central Florida counties took part and reported
their members were excited to participate. Many of the problems discovered
have already been addressed and corrected. Those who participated in the
Peace River Coordinating Group were very pleased with the exercise. Seeing
how ARES works and what benefits it can bring them during emergencies gave
the group new appreciation for ARES and how it can be a valuable part of
the emergency team on those “dark sky days.” --*Christine Duez, K4KJN, EC,
Polk County, Florida*

[image: ARES® Amateur Radio and Public Service]
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*National Traffic System Update, Traffic Handler Resources*

The ARRL National Traffic System® (NTS®) is an important network of amateur
radio operators who move information during disasters and other
emergencies. General messages offering wellwishes also move through the
NTS® to help test the system and to help amateur radio operators build
traffic handling skills. While the NTS® is primarily set up to serve the
United States and Canada, it is possible to move traffic internationally
through the NTS® via various local, regional, area, and international
network connections.

*Modernization of NTS (The NTS 2.0 Project)*

The current National Traffic System (NTS) is comprised of dedicated
operators well trained and practiced in the art of traffic handling. They
participate in nets at the local, section, region, and area levels 365 days
per year.

Yet we cannot ignore reality: the proliferation of low-cost/free telephone
calls, text messaging, and the worldwide web means today's general public
has many alternatives to traditional radiograms. As a result, much of
today's NTS traffic consists solely of amateur-to-amateur messages:
"welcome to amateur radio," "license expiration," etc. In addition, there
are serious questions as to the accuracy and reliability of our networks.
Finally, it should be noted that some public agencies have never heard of
NTS; or, have begun creating their own backup messaging systems.

Historically, NTS and ARES were two branches of the old ARPSC, the Amateur
Radio Public Service Corps. While the ARPSC is gone, the two branches
remain tied together and serve in a symbiotic way. For more information
regarding the modernization of NTS visit The NTS 2.0 Project
<https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTc5OTM3JnA9MSZ1PTUyMDUwMzQ5NSZsaT00MjA4MTg4NA/index.html>
webpage.

To find an NTS-affiliated net in your area, please see the ARRL *Net
Directory*. Sign up to receive *The NTS® Letter. The NTS Letter* is
published monthly and is free of charge to ARRL members. Members can subscribe
to the NTS Letter
<https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTc5OTM3JnA9MSZ1PTUyMDUwMzQ5NSZsaT00MjA4MTg4NQ/index.html>
.

*Other NTS Resources*

NTS 2.0
<https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTc5OTM3JnA9MSZ1PTUyMDUwMzQ5NSZsaT00MjA4MTg4Ng/index.html>

NTS Manual
<https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTc5OTM3JnA9MSZ1PTUyMDUwMzQ5NSZsaT00MjA4MTg4Nw/index.html>

NTS Methods and Practices Guidelines
<https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTc5OTM3JnA9MSZ1PTUyMDUwMzQ5NSZsaT00MjA4MTg4OA/index.html>

Handling Instructions
<https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTc5OTM3JnA9MSZ1PTUyMDUwMzQ5NSZsaT00MjA4MTg4OQ/index.html>

[From *The NTS® Letter*, Marcia Forde KW1U, Editor, and courtesy of ARRL.]
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You can find NTS-affiliated nets in your area
<https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTc5OTM3JnA9MSZ1PTUyMDUwMzQ5NSZsaT00MjA4MTg5MA/index.html>
.

*ARES® Resources*

   - ARES Field Resources Manual [PDF]
   <https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTc5OTM3JnA9MSZ1PTUyMDUwMzQ5NSZsaT00MjA4MTg5MQ/index.html>
   - ARES Standardized Training Plan Task Book [Fillable PDF]
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   - ARES Plan
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   - Emergency Communications Training
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The Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES) consists of licensed amateurs
who have voluntarily registered their qualifications and equipment with
their local ARES leadership, for communications duty in the public service
when disaster strikes. Every licensed amateur, regardless of membership in
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fully in ARES. Please inquire at the local level for specific information.
Because ARES is an amateur radio program, only licensed radio amateurs are
eligible for membership. The possession of emergency-powered equipment is
desirable, but is not a requirement for membership.

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and
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