Local Ham Radio Club Emergency Communication Preparedness Demonstration – American Radio Relay League Field Day
On Saturday, June 22 through Sunday, June 23, 2024, the Red River Valley Amateur Radio Club (RRVARC) will have ham radio operators demonstrating a 24-hour ability to operate in the field in a national demonstration of emergency communication preparedness. When disaster strikes, man made or natural, standard communication techniques (cell phone, landline, Internet) are subject to failure. Ham radio operators have the skills, training, licensing and knowhow to operate under sometimes very trying conditions.
On the morning of Saturday June 22nd RRVARC members will set up radio equipment at the Love Civic Center Pavilion and will be begin operating at 1PM. The exercise concludes at 1PM on Sunday, June 23rd. The drill is an American Radio Relay League Field Day operation. It is an annual event which connects ham radio operators locally, regionally, statewide and nationally. The press and public are invited to attend and participate. Non-licensed persons may operate ham radio equipment while being mentored and supervised by a licensed ham radio operator.
The RRVARC was established in 1973 by dedicated ham radio operators in the local community. Since then, the Club has established a dedicated location at the Paris Texas Police Department headquarters, operating from their Emergency Operations Center (EOC), while providing community communications services. These services include tornado/storm spotting, ice storm communications support and planned functions such as Tour de Paris where the Club serves as the communications coordinator. The Club has a partnership with the National Weather Service (NWS) Fort Worth and a link via the North Central Texas Connection (NCTC) to one of the Club’s radio repeaters. Trained storm spotters/observers in the field provide information to Club personnel at the EOC, which
in turn can provide that information to NWS personnel.
The Club has served the Lamar County and Red River Valley community for over 50 years, supporting first responders in disasters of all types. The group is an American Radio Relay League (ARRL) – The National Association for Amateur Radio® – affiliated Club, regularly teaches classes leading towards licensing and conducts
quarterly test sessions. Some groups that have taken training from RRVARC are church groups, Boy Scouts, Civil Air Patrol and volunteer firefighters, to mention a few.
For more information, additional material or to secure an interview, please contact media@wb5rdd.org.
