==>HAMS A BRIGHT SPOT DURING POWER BLACKOUT

When a power blackout struck at least a half dozen eastern states August
14, many Amateur Radio operators were ready and able to provide whatever
assistance they could. Hardest hit were metropolitan areas like New York
City, Detroit and Cleveland. In New York, residents and commuters found
themselves stranded in electricity-dependent elevators and subway or rail
cars while visitors ended up stuck at airports, which were forced to shut
down. With the cellular systems overloaded or out altogether, the incident
turned into a test of Amateur Radio's capabilities to operate without
commercial power.

"It was a good drill," said New York City-Long Island Section Emergency
Coordinator Tom Carrubba, KA2D. But, he adds, it was a cautionary tale
too. "The lesson is that everybody gets a little complacent," he said.
"Have emergency power backup and make sure it's working!"

By and large, Carrubba said, ARES members did what they were trained to
do. "It's going to show the worth of Amateur Radio," he said of the
blackout response. "There were people on the air immediately."

Diane Ortiz, K2DO, the Public Information Coordinator for NYC-Long Island
was one of them. When power went down in her Suffolk County community, she
started up an informal VHF net. Over the next 20 hours or so, it passed
some 500 pieces of what Ortiz described as largely "health-and-welfare
traffic."

"People are getting on and helping," she said. In addition to handling
messages for people stranded in the city, amateurs also relayed useful
information, such as which stores or filling stations were open and
operating. With many radio and TV stations dark, and hams were able to
help fill the information void, Ortiz said.

In the Big Apple itself, ARES teams provided communication support for Red
Cross Emergency Response Vehicles (ERVs) set up at main transportation
centers in Manhattan. ARES members also accompanied ERVs on fire calls.

RACES activated in most Greater New York City area counties after a state
of emergency was declared. Some ARES teams--including a few across the
Hudson River in New Jersey--activated or remained on standby to help if
called upon. In New Jersey, a net linked the Red Cross lead chapter's
N2ARC in Princeton with other New Jersey ARC chapters.

Michigan Section Manager Dale Williams, WA8EFK, reports scattered ARES
activations. Williams, who lives in Dundee south of Detroit, was without
power August 15 and relying on his emergency generator. Some Michigan ARES
teams assisted emergency operations centers and the Red Cross.

In Ohio, Section Emergency Coordinator Larry Rain, WD8IHP, reports that
all ARES organizations in northern Ohio were activated after the power
grid went down. Still going strong at week's end were ARES teams in
Cleveland and Akron. "ARES is handling communication support for Ohio
Emergency Management in the affected cities and communities," Rain said.
Ohio VHF and UHF nets and the Ohio SSB net on HF have been handling
blackout-related traffic.

Nancy Hall, KC4IYD--who lives 20 miles west of Cleveland--said she's glad
she'd taken the ARRL Emergency Communications Level I class. "I have to
say that being a ham and knowing about emergency preparedness did make
life easier for me and my family," said Hall, who's now signed up for the
Level II class.

New England states were far less affected by the blackout. ARES/RACES
operators in the region were on standby after the blackout. Only
Connecticut and sections of Western Massachusetts reported significant
outages, and ARES nets activated in both states.

Bill Sexton, N1IN/AAR1FP, an Army MARS member, said his emergency power
capability permitted him to check into the Northeast SHARES (National
Communications System HF Shared Resources Program) net and maintain e-mail
contact after Berkshire County lost power.

"The experience proved once gain the great strength of ham radio in an
emergency," Sexton said. "It is self-starting, and it is everywhere."

Article copy write and courtesy of the ARRL Newsletter, August 2003