™     Radio Amateurs of/du Canada

             RAC Field Organization

                     Official RAC Field Organization Appointment Description

Emergency Coordinator

            The RAC Emergency Coordinator is a key team player in ARES on the local emergency scene. Working with the Section Emergency Coordinator, the DEC and Official Emergency Stations, the EC prepares for, and engages in management of communications needs in disasters. EC duties include:

1. Promote and enhance the activities of the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) for the benefit of the public as a voluntary, non-commercial communications service.

2. Manage and coordinate the training, organization and emergency participation of interested amateurs working in support of the communities, agencies or functions designated by the Section Emergency Coordinator/Section Manager.

3. Establish viable working relationships with federal, state, county, city governmental and private agencies in the ARES jurisdictional area which need the services of ARES in emergencies. Determine what agencies are active in your area, evaluate each of their needs, and which ones you are capable of meeting, and then prioritize these agencies and needs. Discuss your planning with your Section Emergency Coordinator and then with your counterparts in each of the agencies. Ensure they are all aware of your ARES group's capabilities, and perhaps more importantly, your limitations.

4. Develop detailed local operational plans with ''served" agency officials in your jurisdiction that set forth precisely what each of your expectations are during a disaster operation. Work jointly to establish protocols for mutual trust and respect. All matters involving recruitment and utilization of ARES volunteers are directed by you, in response to the needs assessed by the agency officials. Technical issues involving message format, security of message transmission, Disaster Welfare Inquiry policies, and others, should be reviewed and expounded upon in your detailed local operations plans.

5. Establish local communications networks run on a regular basis and periodically test those networks by conducting realistic drills.

6. Establish an emergency traffic plan, with Welfare traffic inclusive, utilizing the National Traffic System as one active component for traffic handling. Establish an operational liaison with local and section nets, particularly for handling Welfare traffic in an emergency situation.

7. In times of disaster, evaluate the communications needs of the jurisdiction and respond quickly to those needs. The EC will assume authority and responsibility for emergency response and performance by ARES personnel under his jurisdiction. 

8. Work with other non-ARES amateur provider-groups to establish mutual respect and understanding, and a coordination mechanism for the good of the public and Amateur Radio. The goal is to foster an efficient and effective Amateur Radio response overall.

9. Work for growth in your ARES program, making it a stronger, more valuable resource and hence able to meet more of the agencies' local needs. There are hundreds of new comers to the amateur service who would make ideal additions to your ARES roster. A stronger ARES means a better ability to serve your communities in times of need and a greater sense of pride for Amateur Radio by both amateurs and the public.

10. Report regularly to the SEC, as required.

            Recruitment of new hams and League members is an integral part of the job of every League appointee. Appointees should take advantage of every opportunity to recruit a new ham or member to foster growth of Field Organization programs, and our abilities to serve the public.

If the EC were actually expected to carry out all the duties numbered above, it would greatly restrict ARES leadership.  While you do have the responsibility to see that they are done, it is not necessarily through doing them.  A special appointment, the Assistant Emergency Coordinator (AEC), was created to help carry out these functions.  Unlike other appointments, the AEC is not made by the Section leadership; it is made by you, the EC, to assist in some specialized phase of the ARES work, especially any phase with which the EC is not too familiar.  The AEC is strictly a local appointment, sometimes made on an ad hoc basis and, consequently, does not require RAC membership or SM/SEC approval.

CHAIN OF COMMAND AND JURISDICTION

Your Section is divided into ARES jurisdictions decided by your SEC, often assisted by the DEC.  Your official area of jurisdiction is indicated on your certificate of appointment.  Chain of command is as follows:  ECs report to their DEC, DECs report to their SEC and the SEC reports to the SM.  In Sections where there is no DEC, local ECs report directly to the SEC or directly to the SM if the SEC position is temporarily vacant.

SIMULATED EMERGENCY TEST

It is expected that ECs will conduct local tests and drills as necessary to keep up a high state of activity and interest.  The SET is the high point in the organizational year during which we test our own organization and facilities in a simulated emergency.  Please be sure to be part of this effort.  See the RAC website for full details about SETs and how to report your participation..

POSITION REQUIREMENTS

Basic, or higher, Amateur Radio qualification and Full RAC membership. 

FSD-46-R (5/06)