TC ARES Homeland Security Planning Document
Modern technology has brought us "Packet Radio" the uniting of a computer, TNC (Terminal Node Controller) and a radio. It sends information appearing on the screen of a computer monitor about the same as someone typing at 100 WPM. The TNC a computer itself, has a built-in protocol, that can relay messages point to point as directed by the addressing instructions, or it can be used to "relay" or "digi-peat" the message to a specific or general location.
Drastic Application- Mountain top repeater systems are inoperative, major power, telephone and other communications not availiable due to natural disaster, terrorist activity or war. Our Trinity County Disaster Management Center , OES, Sheriff, Supervisors, Seat of County Government, are located in Weaverville, surrounded by mountains like many populated areas of Trinity in a Valley.
It is important for the Incident Command Center in Weaverville or other Location needs to have status reports from all points of the county to have the expert information from Volunteer Fire Departments, Government Officals, Operators of Stores, Gas Stations, etc.so the best picture of the exact conditions within the county can be painted by information provided by radio, messenger, carrier pidgeon, ESP, whatever the resources may be.
Traditional public safety radio systems both fixed and mobile have limitations when a "simplex", or direct communications is the only type of radio communications availiable. Car to car, base to car, etc. direct communications will be related to the power, location and antennas in use.
The Trinity County Amateur Radio Club, and it's Trinity County ARES (Amateur Radio Emergency Service) sub-group has for more than 20 years provided equipment and skills to communicate across the street , nation or world, and recently even into space.
TCARES has a converted travel trailer called and ECU, Emergency Communications Unit with government, commercial, amateur, military and other communications technologies. Several members have vehicles with various types of communictions installed or able to be rapidly set-up with existing wiring, mountings,etc. for mobile and portable operation. The groups utilize solar powered two way radio repeater systems similar to the public safety sytsems, often with greater range. For the purpose of this project, our "worst case senario" involves them not being functional either.
At various times through the last 20 years, there has been some equipment kept in storage, that was built into protective boxes, suitable for transit to a mountain top by helicopter and left for the duration of the availiabilty of battery power with this portable repeater system for voice. At the time of this writing, there is not a portable voice system ready to go at a moments notice, it would take a day or two to configure and construct if needed.
TCARES and TCSO/TCOES, have portable packet radio stations in their inventory of equipment. The TCSO unit is checked out to TCARES for field deployment as required, including the TCSO itself. TCARES members maintain compatible equipment, VHF voice/packet radio systems (radio, TNC, power, Antenna, support structure, etc.) to bring this equipment to either pre-planned locations or a location at a safe distance from some disaster scene to provide communications. TCARES can use voice, digital packet (written word) and some Slow Scan TV to transmit picture files between specially equipted radio stations.
TCARES Packet Radio Network does have "digipeaters" that can be deployed to locations ranging from mountain top, side of road in in vehicle, inside building as required. They are also in member's homes, business and availiable for portable deployment. They have the ability to "relay" by simplex, even unattended.
Sample application- Information needs to be transmitted to Trinty Hospital (direct or via TCOES/TCARES from Coffee Creek area. Perhaps information generated from use of their Community Radio Plan(pending) has provided information of needed medical help, with patient history and medication on hand, current history, and nature of emergency. The information was typed and saved on a laptop, or PC running on emergency power,in the proper fomat, and the computer is connected to a TCARES packet radio station.
The Coffee Creek station enters the "address" of the destination location in this case for example "THB" Trinty Hospital Base, and the Oregon mountain relay location "WRS" that will relay it along the way..., loads the message, then presses "Enter" and the signal is sent , and like magic 1 minute or so later after the message is relayed in it's entirity, it is now waiting in the message system contained in the Trinty Hospital TCARES packet radio system. If the TH packet radio system was not installed already, a portable station would be installed on the pre-installed antenna, an power source. The message can be retrieved from it's "mailbox" and action taken. This was an example of one application of a message delivery by packet using direct, or relayed message via digipeater, and stored at the desired location in the wireless electronic mailbox for retrieval.... using totally independent Amateur Radio Communications.
Another way this message may have been deliveed, would be from the same location in Coffee Creek, the operator on duty at the TCARES station would call on the pre-established network frequency, and would use a standard calling procedure "K6SDD-Trinity Hospital" this is KG6HXW, Coffee Creek". If the station at the Hospital was manned and able to hear, they would answer the Coffee Creek station. If there was no answer after a couple calls, perhaps a Weaverville Station, could call Coffee Creek, and offer to take the message for local delivery. The message could have been passed, and either deliverd in person, or resent to hospital when they next came on the emergency voice network. Message deliverd, and if the message needed confirmation of delivery, that could have been sent back to Coffee Creek via that same technology. The same voice message might take ten or more minutes to relay because of the slower voice technology. A log of messages relayed would be kept by all staions involved. The packet message has within it all the verifyiing information and the packet radio operator would have seen on his or her screen that the message was delivered.
By extension as wheels in a hub, stations from all parts of Trinity County maybe connected via various paths (station to station) and messages can be sent and delivered by voice or packet conventions designed into the network. It is also possible a message depending on the circumstances, might be relayed from Coffee Creek, to Shasta County, to Weaverville, etc.if that was a better pathway.
As an example of the portable nature of this packet technology, in 2003 a station in Weavervill sent and received message using a hand held radio connected to a packet TNC, and laptop, to another similar set up in Merced California. It just required typing in the address of the station, and the mountain top locations that would be used to relay it. The message could be keyboard to keyboard, or from live keyboard to an electronic mailbox, much like e-mail. This is a sample of TCARES members, your fellow Trinity County citizens being prepared on a regular basis with skills and equipment that they would prefer to just do during their periodic tests, exercises and casual use.
As an example of communications out of area, during emergencies or during national crisis, one member of the TCARES team, is also a member of the US ARMY MARS program. The Original Homeland Security communications network, used as morale support connecting soldiers from the field to love-ones at home. Message traffic or Telephone patch have been used since post WW2. 14 minutes after the Terrorists hit the World Trade Center in NY, the Army had sent an email to this TCARES member to activate the Emergency Network in Northern California. The member had already rallyed to the emergency network as had others and were following their pre-prepared emergency plan already, as the news was monitored from TV, while operating on emergency battery power.
TC ARES also utilized High Frequency Radio communications to go across town, state,nation or world away with existing emergency and conventional networks. Propagation (radio conditions) influence these communications. VHF voice and packet radio conditions are failrly constant day or night. A TCARES HF radio may be able to send information directly to Sacramento , where the State of California Office of Emergency Services is Located., or to various other locations utilizing pre-existing networks, and plans.
The present sections are as follows:
The plan will grow in the various areas independently, as resources are available, with the goal to find ways to connect the entire county. The plan is a standard Amateur Radio Emergency Activity, funded by members individually and in groups to include stations that might be located at Volunteer Fire Departments, Public Buildings or private residences that reflect the participants in the community.
More information posted soon
Last Updated: September 16, 2003
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