From: Kramer, Harold, WJ1B
Sent: Friday, September 23, 2005 3:36 PM
To: HQ Staff
Subject: It seems to us
The November QST "It seems to us" column:
It seems to us..
In the forty-eight hours that followed Katrina's landfall in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, we began receiving life and death survivor inquiries, along with urgent requests for help here at ARRL Headquarters.
Within a few days after Katrina's strike, we quickly became an information clearinghouse for Katrina volunteers, and served agencies. We began coordinating logistics, fielding public relations and media inquiries and managing monetary and equipment contributions. This was a new role for the ARRL staff whose past role has been to support the section and field level appointees during disasters.
We responded by forming an internal team to handle these increasing demands. Chief Operating Officer Harold Kramer, WJ1B and Interim Field Services Manager Dave Patton, NN1N led the team. Under their leadership, the team met daily to assess the situation.
One of the critical areas was the increased demand for information from local and national media. Media and Public Relations Manager, Allen Pitts, W1AGP, fielded inquiries, that resulted in articles from the Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, MSNBC, The New York Times, National Public Radio and hundreds of other media outlets. To date, Allen has responded to hundreds of inquiries to tell the Amateur Radio story.and they're still coming in. Allen also spent a couple of days at the Red Cross headquarters in Montgomery, Alabama handling the media requests that were overwhelming the communications volunteers.
We also needed to quickly find a way to register hams who volunteered to serve in the Gulf region. With the help of AB2M's existing database, our Manager of Web Development, Jon Bloom, KE3Z and his staff, created an on-line volunteer database for hams who were willing to travel to the Gulf. At the same time, we received urgent requests from agencies in desperate need of amateur operators. Our solution was an on- line based database where operators could match the agency needs with their time, expertise and equipment.
We created a prominent section of the ARRL Web site dedicated to Katrina resources and information. Rick Lindquist, N1RL, our News Editor, kept the web site updated with the latest information. The large volunteer response required us to provide detailed instructions to hams traveling to the Gulf Coast including the need for each ham to be a completely self-sustaining unit with their own food, water and shelter.
The Amateur Radio industry helped in the effort by making significant contributions of equipment and supplies. The equipment included everything from HT's, and HF rigs to headsets, power supplies, batteries, antennas and coax. We sent the equipment to areas where ham gear was damaged or destroyed or where more permanent installations were required.. Dennis Motschenbacher, K7BV, Janet Rocco W1JLR, Wayne Mills N7NG, and Norm Fusaro W3IZ, coordinated the equipment procurement and shipping. We also sent Dennis to Montgomery where he assisted Alabama Section Manager Greg Saratt, W4OZK, who was managing The Red Cross communications efforts for 250 shelters and kitchens.
Communications between the HQ and the various parts of the ARRL Field Organization was one of our most important and critical functions. Steve Ewald, WV1X, acted as the link between headquarters, Section Managers (SMs) and Section Emergency Coordinators (SECs) in the Gulf. A daily SM/SEC conference call to the field team was coordinated through ARRL Headquarters. The conference call was used to assess the situation, communicate important information between SM's and provide support where needed.
As information continued to flow into Headquarters, it became clear that we needed to monitor HF activity over the Holiday weekend. Joe Carcia, NQ1R, W1AW Station Manager, monitored the emergency nets for potential interference and passed emergency traffic as needed. Team members took shifts to monitor 20, 40 and 80 meters, 24 hours a day through the Labor Day weekend. Bill Moore, NC1L, DXCC Manager, monitored the nets and acted as a relay station and net controller during the overnight shifts,
The HQ staff also stayed in daily contact with ARRL served agencies and other volunteer organizations. Former Field Services Manager Rosalie White, K1STO, participated in a daily conference call with VOAD, Volunteers Organized Against Disaster. She was the eyes and ears of ham radio, listening for problems where hams could help.
Our Development Department, under the leadership of Chief Development Officer Mary Hobart, K1MMH, established a set of "Ham Aid" reimbursement procedures so radio amateurs volunteering to provide emergency communication in the field during the Hurricane Katrina disaster can recover some out-of-pocket expenses. The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) has provided a $100,000 grant supplement to the ARRL to help fund this effort. One generous donor contributed $7,000 to the effort.
While many on the headquarters staff were involved in the day to day response and to Hurricane Katrina, other ARRL staff members pitched in to cover the organization's day to day operations in membership, publications, VEC, club relations, DXXX and contesting. In a very real sense, the response to Katrina involved the entire ARRL.
We are working hard here at ARRL Headquarters to do everything possible to support volunteer amateur radio operators and served agencies that depend on Amateur Radio, especially..when all else fails.
The ARRL Katrina Response Team
Harold Kramer, WJ1B
Chief Operating Officer
ARRL - The National Association for Amateur Radio
225 Main Street
Newington, CT 06111
860 594 0220