There were many, many variations of the "SET,"
simulated emergency test, throughout the Great Lakes Region this month, I'm
sure. And while I didn't get to many of
them, I know you all found lots of good information about our preparedness as
hams, a lot good, some not so good.
Systems we think work sometimes don't.
But the good thing is, we fix the ones that don't work.
The one drill I did participate in was with my home club,
and it was to check out our various paths of communications back to the Red Cross
in Cincinnati. Red Cross has recently
reorganized nationally, and states and regions are the way they are
thinking. So our Cincinnati-Dayton
region has more than thirty-five counties to oversee. Direct ham radio communication is not always
possible, when your north-south distance stretches over 180 miles. That's where the "relay" comes
in. For instance, I was in the far
northern counties, 100+ miles from Cincinnati, and depended on the folks at the
Dayton chapter for relaying information back to Cincinnati. Other stations jumped in with relaying from
their parts of the countryside as well.
Technology also played a part. These new DMR radios that we have started
playing with are great. Using the Ohio
Talkgroup, we were able to talk back and forth from the Chapter in Cincinnati
to various mobiles throughout the area.
Nice stuff.
So we have various paths to use. If technology fails us, we can still do what
Hiram Percy Maxim, W1AW, taught us, and "relay" the messages. But when the technology is up and running,
that direct communication is powerful.
Whatever form your SET took, I hope you were able to
participate and learn new things about ham radio.
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