Family Communications During A Disaster

[k0xxx]

During a disaster, whether its short term like the after math of a tornado, or long term as a severe economic disruption, your family needs a way to stay in touch. Here are some of the options that are available to the majority of us. The list is not all inclusive, as I have avoided the more exotic and expensive methods. The list is only given as food for thought for those looking to increase their preparedness. Comments and additions are certainly welcomed.

Telephones You can count on telephones being out of service in most disasters. If you live in an area where the lines are buried, as opposed to on the power poles, you stand a better chance of having service. Also, remember that todays cordless phones rely on having electricity to work. Its a good idea to keep one of the old corded phones around, just in case. Your best chance for a working phone is a payphone, if you can find one. If the disaster is long term, as in a depression or something similar, money to keep the phone turned on may be hard to come by.

Cell Phones A cell phone is a radio, a fancy radio that enables you to connect to the regular phone lines. If the disaster covers a wide area, as in a earthquake or hurricane, unless you can connect through a cell tower to a working land line, youre out of luck. Also, even when the land lines are still up, priority is given to emergency services and your call may actually be blocked from connecting.

The Cellular system is designed for a certain amount of normal usage. When that amount is exceeded, as in an emergency, the cells get overloaded. When this happens, a text message may be your best way of getting a message though. A text message requires less bandwidth than a voice call and can usually go though, although it may take longer than usual. However, when the electricity is out, the battery backup at cell sites will eventually fail. You also may not be able to recharge your cell phone. As with the land line telephone service, money may not be available to pay for the service in a long term event.

FRS Radios These are nice for communicating while on family outings and for general short-range communication. With their frequencies being in the UHF range, most communications are line of sight, and are adversely affected by obstacles between the two radios. However, they are also used by CERT teams, and could become very busy in the more populated areas. I can also imagine situations where interference with CERT teams would be a problem and you may be told, in no uncertain terms, to cease transmitting.

GMRS Similar to FRS, but with a little more range and power. They require a license from the FCC, which currently costs $85.00. However, only one adult member of a family needs a license and then the rest of the immediate family is covered. GMRS radios can also share some of the frequencies with the FRS radios.

CB citizen band radios operate in the upper HF (27 MHz) portion of the radio spectrum. They are good for across town communication, but are subject to atmospheric interference during certain times of the year. They require no license. Interference from other stations, especially in urban areas, can be a severe problem. Also, children and sensitive adults, should avoid channel 19 (the main channel used by truckers), lest your ears be melted by some of the language.

Amateur Radio Ham radio is the ultimate communication medium for the average citizens. I am certainly biased, but with good reason. You can get an entry level Amateur Radio Technician license by passing a 35-question multiple-choice examination. No Morse code test is required. The exam covers basic regulations, operating practices, and basic electronics theory, with a focus on VHF and UHF applications.

Instead of a few channels, Hams have frequency ranges available that cover HF, VHF, UHF, SHF, microwave, and up. The Amateur Radio Service has available more frequency coverage, and over a wider range, than most government agencies. Hams also have their own satellites which are available to even the most basic licensees. Its no wonder that when a disaster strikes, and all other communication is down, Hams are still able to provide communication.

Well, this is the list of options that I could think of. Im sure that there are others. If you can add to it, Id appreciate the input.

Mark,
Amateur Radio callsign KXXX

 

[heatherv]

Also, children and sensitive adults, should avoid channel 19 (the main channel used by truckers), lest your ears be melted by some of the language.

LOL! That cracked me up! My dad was a trucker (retired now) and I heard it all. But that's great that you warned people!

Thanks for sharing your knowledge! I know when my DH was in FL during a hurricane a few years ago, and I was in MI, it was awful not having contact for a few days.

 

[DuppyDo]

Thanks for posting that Mark, very informative
and interesting..
What exactly is a Ham radio..? Where does one get one and are they expensive..? Can you suggest any links that are informative on the subject...Sounds like a good thing to know about and get involved in, one never knows when something like this could come in handy.....thanks....Kevin

 

[k0xxx]

Thanks for posting that Mark, very informative
and interesting..
What exactly is a Ham radio..? Where does one get one and are they expensive..? Can you suggest any links that are informative on the subject...Sounds like a good thing to know about and get involved in, one never knows when something like this could come in handy.....thanks....Kevin

Hi Kevin,

Ham radio is a FCC licensed radio service that provides the broadest and most powerful wireless communications capability available to any private citizen anywhere in the world.

Mainly it is a hobby, and like any hobby, can get expensive. However, it doesn't have to. VHF radios used for communicating locally can be purchased new in the $100 range and can be purchased through a variety of dealers.

Getting a license involves taking a multiple choice test administered by volunteers, and usually an administrative fee of about $15. The test questions are available before and there are places on the web where you can take practice tests for free.

One of the best sites to learn about Amateur Radio is at this link . A local club is another way to learn about Ham Radio and I can help you try to locate one if you'd like.

I've had a lot of fun as a Ham over the years that I have been licensed. My wife and both kids have their license and we use radio to communicate around the property and across the county. We live in Arkansas and my son currently lives in New Orleans. We talk via radio whenever we get the chance.

Hams can volunteer to work with Local, State, and Federal government agencies, as well as other service agencies, to help get emergency messages into and out of disaster areas. You can use radio to just chat with family and friends, meet and chat with new friends around the globe, bounce signals off of meteors and the moon, use your computer to communicate digitally, and much, much more.

Sorry if I am a bit long winded. I get a bit over enthused when talking about my hobby. Please let me know if I can be of any assistance or if you have any other questions.

73, (Ham speak for Best Regards)
Mark, KXXX

 

[roosmom]

This is a good post. It just showed me how woefully unprepared I am concerning communications in the event of an emergency. I refuse to get a cell phone because they are a pain. Ham radios are expensive. My family is a long ways away at times, I guess I better figure something out eh?

 

[makerofstuff]

My Dad was a HAM operator. I have a cousin locally that has enough gear in his radio room for a small invasion force. In case of a real wide scale emergency I don't know how I would communicate with my family if the phones and cell towers went out. This is something to ponder.

 

[MorelCabin]

I think every family should actually have a disaster "plan" Like where to meet in case of...in my case I would hope that the kids just start walking home if they can, but I should actually get a plan put together so that I have some idea of the route they would take and meet them if I could, with what ever means I have here...be it truck, snowmobile or dirtbike:>)
I usually always know where everyone is so that part is easy...
Re: Ham radios...do you mean contact with extended family? Ans what is the likelyhood that anyone of you family members would have one at hand if they needed it, besides, of course at your home base. I mean everyone knows people love thier cell phones, but I can't see everyone leaving the house with a ham unless you live in a commune or something:>)

 

[Homesteadmom]

Our elec co., is ran by the local indian tribe & they do not have the best equipment so sometimes when the wind blows we lose elec. And just because of that the phone in our bedrm is a old fashioned corded phone that requires no elec. Dh has a cb in his truck & I think another one in the shop that was in my old truck, so we could talk while he was at work if need be. And we can text too!

 

[k0xxx]

I think every family should actually have a disaster "plan" Like where to meet in case of...in my case I would hope that the kids just start walking home if they can, but I should actually get a plan put together so that I have some idea of the route they would take and meet them if I could, with what ever means I have here...be it truck, snowmobile or dirtbike:>)
I usually always know where everyone is so that part is easy...
Re: Ham radios...do you mean contact with extended family? Ans what is the likelyhood that anyone of you family members would have one at hand if they needed it, besides, of course at your home base. I mean everyone knows people love thier cell phones, but I can't see everyone leaving the house with a ham unless you live in a commune or something:>)

A common point of contact is important during an emergency when a family is separated. Your entire family should memorize a phone number of an out of state relative. In the event of an emergency where you are separated, each of you can call the relative collect and give the relative pertinent information, such as where they are, if they are going to walk home, if they are stranded, etc. If a child has trouble memorizing the number, you could possibly write it inside of one of their shoes using a permanent marker (I'm guessing here, use your imagination).

Ham radios are usually the only way to get info into or out of an area during major disasters, especially during the first few days. There are Hams (myself included) that are trained in disaster communication and volunteer their time and equipment to pass messages into and out of the areas. Katrina and the Indonesian tsunami were prime examples. Amateur Radio is also recognized and called upon by the Dept. of Homeland Security, FEMA and many other government agencies to assist in emergency communications.

We aren't required to provide emergency communications, it's just something that some Hams volunteer to do. We take the time to train and and try to keep our gear ready to respond, if we should be needed.

Besides myself, my wife and two kids are all licensed Hams. My son, who lives in the New Orleans area, and I speak via ham radio at least once or twice a week.

The basic Amateur Radio license is easy to get and it costs less (around $14) than an GMRS license ($60) that you can barely communicate across town with. Also, these is no longer a Morse Code requirement for any Ham license. This past weekend I helped administer a test for the basic license to a 12 year old boy.

Ham radios come in all shapes and sizes. I have large radios in my home that are used for communicating across town and around the world, smaller radios in my two vehicles that can do the same, and even smaller ones (hand held) that will only work across the county.
They even make radios that are hardly bigger than a credit card, that will work across the county.

Amateur Radio is just another tool available to everyone, if they want it. In my families situation, it is a tool that is well used, and used often.

Yeah, I know... I'm long winded. Someone asks what time it is and I start telling them how to build a clock.

 

[k0xxx]

This is a good post. It just showed me how woefully unprepared I am concerning communications in the event of an emergency. I refuse to get a cell phone because they are a pain. Ham radios are expensive. My family is a long ways away at times, I guess I better figure something out eh?

Ham radios certainly can be expensive, but they don't need to be. Given unlimited resources, I would be happy to buy a "top of the line" $12,000 radio, a $20,000 tower, and a few tens of thousands worth of antennas. It would be easy to do.

However, you can buy used radios that are made to communicate across the county for under $100. You can also purchase a used radio that will get you talking around the world for under $300. Sure, it will be older, it won't have all of the "bells and whistles" of a new radio, but it will work.

In certain emergency scenarios, I would rather have one of the older radios. I have probably $5000 tied up in Amateur equipment. However, it is my only hobby, and I splurged when I took out some retirement money to add on to our home. I also have some very specialized equipment, for doing things that aren't related to communicating in an emergency (like bouncing signals off the moon, off meteors, communicating though the Amateur Radio satellites, and a few other "weird" things).

Amateur Radio isn't a cure all for communications, but it can be very helpful in a lot of situations. It will also give you more ways to communicate and more frequency options than your local police, and most Federal agencies.