NF4CA
License
CARES
Constitution
Florida
ARES Task
Book
Welcome to the Columbia County ARES
program!
The primary partner we support is the Columbia County Emergency
Management. Members who meet
all
requirements and accept a preassignment for deployment to a local
shelter will be issued an ID card. All other amateur radio operators
may participate as ARES® operators from their home unless deployed
through another agency such as American Red Cross, Salvation Army,
MARS, etc. Locally, in Columbia County, all ARES members who
desire to participate in emergency deployments for county shelters or
the Emergency Operations Center must meet the basic requirement of at
least the IS-100,
IS-700, and pass a level 2 background check. Hams who wish to be called
up as mutual aid
communications resources for regional, statewide, or national
deployments will also need IS-200 and IS-800 certifications.
Columbia ARES Application
FEMA Student ID
ICS Online classes
ARRL Online classes
Band Plan
Area Nets
Older Headlines
2022 Training Survey
Help us as we plan for new training
opportunities.
Please take a few minutes to answer the questions in this survey. As we
do exercises, we discover areas we need to train in. We also would like
to know what you are interested in learning.
Take
Survey
Here.
Online NTS/Radiogram Training
Some of the feedback that was received during the month of March is
that many
operators know how to fill out a radiogram form, but some aren’t aware
of where to find a net to transmit it on or how to read them on the
air. To help with this, our Section Traffic Manager Helen-WC4FSU, and
Matt-KD8TTE who spoke in Orlando, will provide an open training
session for those interested to learn about where and how formal
traffic can make its way into the NTS. Training will be held via Zoom
on April 20 at 5:30P CDT/6:30P EDT. No registration is required, simply
click this
link when it is time to join.
Field Day 2021
As always Field Day is the last
full weekend of June.
Read the updated plan
here.
View
the planned layout
here.
Hurricane Season 2021
NOAA predicts another active
Atlantic hurricane season
May 20, 2021--NOAA's Climate Prediction Center is predicting another
above-normal Atlantic hurricane season. Forcasters predict a 60% chance
of an above normal season, a 30% chance of a near-normal season, and a
10% chance of a below-normal season.However, experts do not anticipate
the historic level of storm activity seen in 2020.
Read
rest of story here.
Watch this
video summary of
the Outlook.
WX4NHC Annual Station
Communications Test – Saturday May 28th 2022
The annual WX4NHC On Air Communications Test has been set for Saturday
May 28th, 2022 and WX4NHC will be on the air on the VoIP Hurricane Net
system Echolink conference node: 7203/IRLP 9219 from 4-5 PM EDT
(2000-2100z). Other Amateur Radio modes will be utilized and those
details are listed in the announcement below from WD4R-Julio Ripoll,
Assistant WX4NHC Coordinator.
Announcement from WX4NHC
Armed Forces Day
This Saturday, May 14th will be a special DOD Drill. We will have the
opportunity to interact with some Department of Defense stations. They
will transmit on out of Ham frequiencies and will announce where they
will be listening in the Ham frequiencies.
Watch the YouTube
video by our friend Matthew, KD8TTE in Ohio, and
check out the
pdf.
Colorado State University issues Forcasting for 2022 Hurricane
Season
More active than normal, again!
Read
Forcast here.
Read
Extended Forcast here.
Field Day 2022
THE PRACTICE
Yes, It's coming! Field Day is always the last full weekend in June,
and now is the time to practice and test our equipment.
We will beholding TWO practice days this Year. April 2 and April 16.
They both will be in our practice yard at 148 SW Slash Lane, Lake City.
Register
on this Google form
and read the plan
here
We will start gathering around 9:00AM and begin setting things up at
9:30AM The first will be for setting our VHF station, tower with
antennas, feedline, radios and alternate power.
The second will be to test our HF stations. We will put up multiple
antennas, aradios alternate power etc.
THE EVENT
June 25 and 26, 2022
Again this year we will be holding our Field Day Event at Aligator Lake
Park in Lake City. We had a good time last year, more than doubling our
points from the previous year (prior to the Covid blackout). We hope to
increase our effort this year and plan to have 3 stations instead of 2.
All the details are in the ExPlan which is posted here (link below) for
you to read. Set-up will begin when the park opens at 8:00am and the
event officially starts at 2:00pm. This year we are inviting our
guests, elected officals, girl scouts and others, to come between 2:00
and 4:00 pm.
In order to have the three stations and generate more points we will
need as many operators as possible! Please use the link below and
schedule some time that you will be willing to operate. You can sign up
for as many 2 hour blocks as you want. Someone will be
able to help you get comfortable with the equipment and procedures if
this will be your first time.
Register
on this Google form
and read the plan
here
Our North Florida Section Emergemcy Coordinator, Arc Thames is
issuing
a challenge to send a VOICE Radiogram.
"New Monthly Radiogram Challenge
Continuing for April, I am issuing a challenge to all hams within our
section to send a Radiogram using phone/voice over one of
our local or section nets. April’s challenge is to send me, W4CPD, a
Radiogram to share with me the name of a shelter
that is commonly used in your county. Please be sure to include your
county name. The section website, arrl-nfl.org, has a net listing. Many
of these nets have a traffic representative/liaison that can
pass your traffic up to a section net to allow the traffic to reach me.
"
We do not have a local VHF traffic net so you would need to be able to
use HF. The Florida Phone Traffic Net is held daily at 0700 on 3940MHz.
If you do not have HF, then maybe we could work something out if you
are
interested in participating.
I have posted a mostly blank Radiogram
here with
Arc's info filled in.
(His last name is pronounced TIMS).
National Forcast Chart:
National Weather Service
Jacksonville
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