----- Original Message -----
From: Ron Dodson
Subject: RE: [NRCEV] We DO have jobs to do

> Joe Moell K0OV wrote:
>> I disagree. With a little effort, hams COULD have important jobs to
>> do on a week-to-week basis.
>
> I agree. In Kentucky we have several groups who assist regular
> localized activities.

But NOT Emergency Communications -- the difference between Emergency
Communications versus all these other kinds of Public Service communications
is the key to the original discussion

> In western Kentucky, we have one group who regularly
> assists local EMA with checks on county storm warning
> devices (Sirens). They report on any which fail to activate
> during regular scheduled tests.

Scheduled siren tests bear no resembelence to emergency communications

This is a valuable service to the community.

Even more than just a valuable service to the community, it is especially
important in that it maintains an on-going working relationship between
local hams and the EMA.

But it isn't Emergency Communications....
It isn't even practice for Emergency Communications

Again I am in no way disparaging the value of such service both the the
community and to ham radio.

> Another northern Kentucky ARES group are
> called in on almost any lost person search to
> support the law enforcement search efforts and
> yes, they are trained in lost person search and
> in many cases a good deal of the members have
> even taken search management training.

Now THIS may be Emergency Communications, or at least good practice for
Emergency Communications -- IF the hams are called to provide communications
for the search rather than simply being a good source of ready manpower for
the search.

Again (either way) it is a valuable service to the community.

And again (either way) it is important in that it maintains an on-going
working relationship between local hams and their local emergency services
agencies.

> Other groups work with local CitizenCorps CERT’s

I'll pass on this one, because the role of emergency communicators in CERT
is a potentially controversial issue.

> and regional National Disaster Medical System (NDMS)

Actually working with NDMS could involve emergency communications under some
circumstances. But there are two realities which go against including NDMS
as an example of routine callouts of hams for emergency communications work:
1. NDMS hardly ever gets called out at all (and hardly ever runs serious
drills)
2. In the rare instances where NDMS would be used, by definition, it would
not involve emergency communications, because NDMS is activated in an
unaffected area to receive casualties coming from a disaster or other mass
casualty event.

> and Metropolitan Medical Response System (MMRS) activities
> while others work with regional weapons of mass destruction/
> haz-mat/ bio response teams that our state homeland security
> operate.

To the extent that the ham radio organizations are actually involved in
serving these agencies, it would represent good PRACTICE for emergency
communications. Unfortunately my observation has generally been that ham
radio involvement with such agencies is mostly just on paper. "The Plan"
includes ham radio support -- but the agencies rarely drill the plan and
when they do the ham radio support is either not played or is played
separately from the agency activities. Instead of reinforcing a close
working relationship between ham radio and the Served Agency, all too often
such drills reinforce the mistaken concept that Emergency Communications
consists of hams-talking-to-other-hams.

> One south central Ky group performs “Highway Overpass
> Watch” details assisting local law enforcement in preventing
> trouble at interstate overpasses on events such as Halloween
> night.

Copy and Paste my comments about the Siren Tests here. ;-)

> There is a world of things one can do if you make the
> right connections and carry out requests responsibly.

ABSOLUTELY TRUE -- and both the contacts and the "things one can do" are
important -- but the are not emergency communications.

The original point someone made was that Emergency Communications is
different from routine "emergency" services like Fire, Police, and EMS; and
that point is also absolutely true. There are "lots of things one can do"
on a regular basis, but emergency communications simply is not one of those
things.

73 de N4AOF