CARDS is the Claremont Amateur Radio Disaster Service. Located in Claremont, California, CARDS is a volunteer auxiliary of the Claremont Police Department. All CARDS Members are federally-licensed Amateur Radio Operators. During local emergencies, CARDS Members are deployed throughout the community to provide essential communications. Because normal channels -- such as dispatch repeaters and cellular telephones -- are regularly disabled within minutes of a disaster, CARDS Members often provide the only means of communication among city officials, police personnel, fire fighters, and relief organizations -- especially during the first few critical hours of an emergency. CARDS Members are capable of communicating completely independent of commercial power and other infrastructure. During both activations and training, CARDS Members staff the city's Emergency Operations Center and the police department's Mobile Command Post. In addition, traffic is handled using the personal radio systems of CARDS Members. All personal equipment and supplies are furnished -- at their own expense -- by CARDS Members. Credentials, issued by the city, are carried by all CARDS Members. None of the capital and operating expenses incurred by CARDS Members are reimbursed. CARDS Members perform their valuable services as a gift to their community. For more information about CARDS, send a message to "cards-members-owner@yahoogroups.com".