Open Letter to all ARES ECs
EMERGENCY RADIO OPERATORS ARE NEEDED!
AMATEUR RADIO EMERGENCY SERVICE -- A vital and
viable Community Resource
As the incidence of disasters and emergencies of all
types and causes increases, so does the need for emergency agencies to
provide help in stricken areas. Major emergencies can strike anywhere,
anytime, without warning.
Often, existing
means of communications, be they landline telephone, cellular phone or
wireless radio links, become unusable because they are overloaded or simply
no longer exist. They get overloaded when too many persons try at the
same time to dial for help or to check on a friend or family member in a
disaster area. They can become non-existent when wires and towers
topple and electrical supplies fail, due to acts of nature or terrorism.
When emergency
agencies are required in a zone of disaster, their regular means of
communications can be affected by the same disruptive causes as others.
That creates a need for a supplemental or back-up communications system, one
that comes complete with equipment and trained operators who are licenced by
the Canadian government, all at no cost to the public or the agency
involved. In fact, these men and women are volunteers, members of the
Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) sponsored and operated by Radio
Amateurs of Canada.
Amateur Radio is in need of persons who recognize how crucial our back-up
service is to those agencies that respond in times of emergency and to the
members of the public we serve. If you have not yet obtained your Amateur
Radio Operator Certificate, you are strongly urged to do so in order that
you, too, may become a trained emergency radio operator.
(See
Beginners Info)
Primarily because
of age, our numbers are becoming smaller and new volunteers are needed for
this important community resource. If you are a licenced ham,
you too are encouraged to consider helping in this vital service and give
something back to a hobby/service that we all love.
The ARES is
composed of licensed radio amateurs who have voluntarily registered their
qualifications (see the Registration Form below) and equipment for
communications duty in the public service, when disaster strikes. Every
licensed radio amateur, whether or not a member of RAC or of any other local
or regional organization, is eligible for membership in the Amateur Radio
Emergency Service. The only qualification is a sincere desire to serve. The
possession of emergency-powered equipment is desirable but not a
requirement. Training is accomplished locally, using
documents provide by or through RAC.
Emergency service activities in each RAC Section are under
the direction of the Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC), who is appointed
by the Section Manager (SM). The radio amateurs in each community within the
Section register their facilities with the local Emergency Coordinator (EC),
who is also appointed by the SM or SEC. In order to provide better support
in areas where there is a large number of EC appointments, the position of
District Emergency Coordinator (DEC) is appointed by the SM. Being RAC
officers, these appointments must be RAC members. However, as noted above,
other members of a local ARES organization need not be RAC members.
YOU could fill any of these positions.
Fill out the Registration form below and send it to the EC
nearest to you (see top of page) or to your Section
Manager.
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE ARES? Please check our
Frequently Asked Questions
About ARES page. You may also contact Bob Cooke, VE3BDB, Vice President Field Services,
E-mail ve3bdb @ sympatico.ca,
or your local Section
Manager, if you want specific information about how you can participate in any
aspect of the ARES.
ARES REGISTRATION FORM: You
may become a part of the ARES in your locality by
completing this National Registration Form.
START A NEW ARES UNIT:
If your club wishes to propose formation of a new ARES unit,
in an area where one does not currently exist, it may do so using the
Proposed New ARES Unit Information
Form.
OFFICIAL FIELD SERVICES BADGES may be ordered using
this order form
(elected/appointed FS officials only).
ARES-SPECIFIC ITEMS, including jackets, caps,
magnetic signs, ceramic mugs, note pads and ready-bags
are available from the
RAC Online Store.
SET and CEC INFO: Click on the navigation bar links at the top of this page
for information on the annual
Simulated Emergency Test,
the RAC Certified Emergency
Coordinator program and for the names and addresses of some of the
selfless volunteers across the country who contribute their time and effort to making
the organization a success as a vital community resource.
PUBLIC SERVICE ACTIVITY REPORTING
Toot your own horn...and that of Amateur Radio!
Each year Amateur
Radio donates thousands of person-hours of supplementary public service
communications during real emergencies, through simulated emergency tests
and at events such as parades and marathons. Participation in these kinds
of events shows Amateur Radio at its best. It is critically important that
RAC bring documentation of this public service work to the attention of
Industry Canada and other public officials. Don't hide your light
under a basket.
Please REPORT your activities through use of
the Public Service Report. ALL activities, not
only those involving RAC-sponsored services, should be reported.
REGIONAL AMATEUR RADIO ALERT NETWORK
A new service, the Regional Amateur Radio
Alert Network (RARAN), has been set up by RAC's Field Services to support
the AMBER Alert, a voluntary co-operative plan with various supporters,
including radio/television stations, certain commercial interests and
provincial transportation ministries. It is operated by and for the police.
The plan calls for police to provide critical information concerning a
confirmed child abduction, which could assist in locating the child, to the
public. So far, Amateur Radio operators in
Ontario and
British Columbia
have volunteered to form the networks and RARAN is active in both Sections.
If you are willing and able to participate in either network, you are
encouraged to register by clicking on your respective province (above). More
information about the AMBER Alert in Canada can be obtained at
http://www.ourmissingchildren.gc.ca/omc/news/amber_e.htm
ou, en français, à
http://www.ourmissingchildren.gc.ca/omc/news/amber_f.htm.
Any Radio Amateur wishing to assist in
setting up a RARAN in a province not yet having one should contact their
Section Manager and/or the RAC Vice President for Field Services.
"RARAN" is a term created
by RAC Field Services specifically to identify the RAC Regional Amateur
Radio Alert network and must not be used to denote services or enterprises
by any other entity.
DONATIONS ARE ACCEPTED TO SUPPORT THE ARES
In trying to do all that we -- you and the RAC ARES -- wish
to do, often the matter of money gets in the way. While those who are
members of RAC are also paying the way for those who are not, many tangible
support items are virtually impossible to provide without passing along the
associated cost to ARES volunteers. We would like to change that and make
such items more readily available to the ARES family.
RAC will accept financial donations, strictly to help in
providing the support to which we are committed. Even an extra couple
of dollars, submitted when joining or renewing membership, can be of great
assistance in ensuring that the ARES thrives. Corporate or other such
donations would also be beneficial to strengthening and supporting this
community resource. Clubs or ARES units might donate fifty cents or a
dollar from each hamfest/fleamarket admission or table sale. A portion
of 50/50 draws, commonly held at club meetings, could be earmarked for the
ARES.
Membership forms carry a check-off box for such donations,
either by mail or on-line through the RAC website. Additionally, any
person or business wishing to make a donation may do so by contacting RAC
Headquarters by Email at rachq@rac.ca,
website www.rac.ca or by telephone
toll-free at 1-877-273-8304. The future of Amateur Radio depends upon
the ARES and, as a Radio Amateur/ARES member, the future depends upon YOU.
NEW LAPEL
PIN IDENTIFIES WEARER AS PART OF THE ARES COMMUNITY RESOURCE
RAC
Field Services is pleased to introduce a new lapel pin designed and
intended solely for those concerned with the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES),
while at the same time providing a source of financial support for the
ARES.
ARES members may now proudly show themselves in a more formal manner as
being part of an important and vital community resource by wearing this
exclusive, smartly-styled emblem. Proceeds from sales will go toward
supporting the ARES.
This
classy-looking
pin, just slightly larger than a Canadian quarter, is handsomely crafted in black enamel with gold-coloured
raised letters, border and RAC ARES logo.
Instead of the common "push on" method of attachment,
which allows "spinning", the pin features a jewellery-type locking clasp, thereby keeping it securely fastened and
in correct position on your jacket, shirt or coat.
The
pin will be offered exclusively to bonafide members of the ARES, proof of
which will be required, as well as to others identified as being connected
with or supporters of the RAC ARES. It will soon be available
on-line from the
RAC Online Store,
just in time for someone's
Christmas stocking.
|
New
for 2007...
RAC
Certified Emergency Coordinator Badge.
|
This
handsome badge is available to every Radio Amateur who successfully
completes the open-book CEC exam. Those who have already completed the
exam are also eligible.
Click
here for details about the CEC programme and this new badge.
NOTICE RE USE OF THE ARES NAME AND/OR LOGO
In Canada, the ARES name and logo are the rightful property
of Radio Amateurs of Canada Incorporated. Only official RAC Amateur Radio
Emergency Service organizations or bonafide sponsoring clubs of those
organizations are authorized to use the ARES name and/or logo on
correspondence, business cards and websites without first obtaining
permission from RAC.
In cases where the ARES logo or name is used on a website
that is
not part of a recognized RAC Field Services ARES organization or
a bonafide sponsoring club, that fact should be prominently displayed on the
website's home page by way of a "disclaimer".
The reason for this request is to avoid such sites mistakenly
being seen as part of the RAC FS ARES. This simply means that if you
are operating a website that displays the ARES name or logo, but which in
itself is not provided by any recognized ARES unit or by a club sponsoring
an ARES unit and is not part of the RAC FS ARES internet services, this
declaimer should be displayed. In no way is it intended to lessen the
importance of that website. Actual bonafide ARES groups or clubs
sponsoring those groups do not need to post the disclaimer.
The suggested wording for this "disclaimer" is:
"This is an independent
website and not part of, nor sponsored by, the Radio Amateurs of Canada
Inc., which is the rightful holder of the ARES name and logo in Canada."
In order to protect you from spam, we have processed all e-mail addresses on
this page using JavaScript coding. Though your browser can read the e-mail
addresses and you click on them to send e-mail, they appear as gibberish to
a spambot attempting to harvest e-mail addresses for the purpose of
generating more spam. Or, addresses are displayed with a space on either
side of the @ sign. It will take us a while to change all the addresses on
this web site, so please be patient.
Thanks.
E-mail Field Org: ve3bdb @ rac.ca
