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News
AMATEURS
Ham radio operators to hold 'Field Day'
June 20, 2006
SUNBURY — Thousands of ham radio operators will be showing off their emergency capabilities this weekend. During Hurricane Katrina, amateur radio — often called "ham radio" — was often the only way people could communicate, and hundreds of volunteer "hams" traveled south to save lives and property.
Locally, during Hurricane Ivan, local hams were called out to help with emergency communications for Snyder County and to work with the Red Cross in manning evacuation shelters in Selinsgrove.
On Saturday and Sunday, the public will have a chance to meet and talk with these ham radio operators and see for themselves what the amateur radio service is all about.
Showing the newest digital satellite capabilities, voice communications and even historical Morse code, hams from across the U.S. will be holding public demonstrations of emergency communication abilities.
This annual event, called "Field Day," is the climax of the weeklong "Amateur Radio Week" sponsored by ARRL, the National Association for Amateur Radio.
Using only emergency power supplies, ham operators will construct emergency stations in parks, shopping malls, schools and back yards around the country.
Their slogan, "Ham radio works when other systems don't!" is more than just words to the hams as they prove they can send messages in many forms without the use of phone systems, Internet or any other infastructure that can be compromised in a crisis.
More than 30,000 amateur radio operators across the country participated in last year's event.
In the Sunbury/Selinsgrove area, the Susquehanna Valley Amateur Radio Club will be demonstrating Amateur Radio at Selinsgrove Airport (entrance off Creek Road) on Saturday and Sunday.
The public is invited to come and see ham radio's capabilities and learn how to get their own FCC radio license before the next disaster strikes.
Talk to local radio operators and see what modern amateur radio can do.
There will also be the opportunity for visitors to get on the air and talk to other people around the U.S. and Canada and perhaps even further away.
"We hope that people will come and see for themselves, this is not your grandfather's radio anymore," said Bob Stahl, president of SVARC. "The communications networks that ham radio people can quickly create have saved many lives in the past months when other systems failed or were overloaded."
There are 660,000 amateur radio operators in the U.S. and more that 2.5 million around the world. Through ARRL, ham volunteers provide emergency communications for DHS Citizens' Corps, Red Cross, Salvation Army, FEMA and thousands of other state and local agencies, all for free."
News
AMATEURS
Ham radio operators to hold 'Field Day'
June 20, 2006
SUNBURY — Thousands of ham radio operators will be showing off their emergency capabilities this weekend. During Hurricane Katrina, amateur radio — often called "ham radio" — was often the only way people could communicate, and hundreds of volunteer "hams" traveled south to save lives and property.
Locally, during Hurricane Ivan, local hams were called out to help with emergency communications for Snyder County and to work with the Red Cross in manning evacuation shelters in Selinsgrove.
On Saturday and Sunday, the public will have a chance to meet and talk with these ham radio operators and see for themselves what the amateur radio service is all about.
Showing the newest digital satellite capabilities, voice communications and even historical Morse code, hams from across the U.S. will be holding public demonstrations of emergency communication abilities.
This annual event, called "Field Day," is the climax of the weeklong "Amateur Radio Week" sponsored by ARRL, the National Association for Amateur Radio.
Using only emergency power supplies, ham operators will construct emergency stations in parks, shopping malls, schools and back yards around the country.
Their slogan, "Ham radio works when other systems don't!" is more than just words to the hams as they prove they can send messages in many forms without the use of phone systems, Internet or any other infastructure that can be compromised in a crisis.
More than 30,000 amateur radio operators across the country participated in last year's event.
In the Sunbury/Selinsgrove area, the Susquehanna Valley Amateur Radio Club will be demonstrating Amateur Radio at Selinsgrove Airport (entrance off Creek Road) on Saturday and Sunday.
The public is invited to come and see ham radio's capabilities and learn how to get their own FCC radio license before the next disaster strikes.
Talk to local radio operators and see what modern amateur radio can do.
There will also be the opportunity for visitors to get on the air and talk to other people around the U.S. and Canada and perhaps even further away.
"We hope that people will come and see for themselves, this is not your grandfather's radio anymore," said Bob Stahl, president of SVARC. "The communications networks that ham radio people can quickly create have saved many lives in the past months when other systems failed or were overloaded."
There are 660,000 amateur radio operators in the U.S. and more that 2.5 million around the world. Through ARRL, ham volunteers provide emergency communications for DHS Citizens' Corps, Red Cross, Salvation Army, FEMA and thousands of other state and local agencies, all for free."
