Paul Smith

KNW-146NVIS Antenna Test Written by Earl Pack AE5PA. Permission granted for use in ARES training. A Near Vertical Incident Skywave (NVIS) antenna test activity was conducted on November 10, 2013 by ten members from various units of the Harris County ARES organization. The group got together at the George Bush Park – Equestrian Area (Grid … Read more

KNW-145Basic Operating Principles Waller County ARES training articlewritten by Christine Smith, N5CAS (sk)Updated 1 Jan 2020Edited 09/2022 by Paul Smith, K5PRS General observations: Basic Disaster Communications: NTS and ARES leadership coordinationWithin the disaster area itself and even beyond, NTS certified, ARES communicators are primarily responsible for emergency communications support. The first priority of those NTS … Read more

KNW-144Prepare For Deployment Waller County ARES training article written by Christine Smith, N5CAS (sk)Edited 09/2022 by Paul Smith, K5PRS Being prepared for an emergency communications deployment involves a wide range of considerations including radio equipment, clothing and personal gear, food and water, medical kit, bedding, information, tools and specialized training documents. The Shuttle accident is … Read more

KNW-143OPERATIONAL STRESS –AN EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE By Pat Spencer, KD4PWLSource: Kentucky Amateur Radio Web SiteEdited 09/2022 by Paul Smith, K5PRSRevised 12/2020 In February of 2003, Lexington, KY faced a severe ice storm. For 8 days, amateur radio operators worked to help the local government with communications to the electric utility, shelters and other locations. Because of … Read more

KNW-142Working In An Incident Command Vehicle By Earl Pack, AE5PA in 2012 Working in an Incident Command Vehicle (ICV) is a challenging and fun experience. Since none of the vehicles are alike and one does not always find what they would expect, some training about an ICV is recommended in the event you have an … Read more

KNW-141Evacuation: Grab-And-Go Kitsand other Plans Compiled from various sources by Earl Pack, AE5PAModified 03 Aug 2025 by Paul Smith, K5PRS What If You Had To Evacuate Your Home In A Hurry? What would you take? Why your Evacuation Grab-and-Go Kits and your radio go-kit of course! But what else? How about your family? This is … Read more

DIS-104Why Do We Train? Maritime High Seas Emergency Story On a Thursday in April at about 10 AM Eastern time, the Intercontinental Traffic Net (INTERCON) with Ernie, K4ZQ in Lexington, NC, Net Manager serving as Net Control intercepted a call on the “Global Center of Activity” IARU designated 20 Meter emergency frequency of 14.300 MHz.More … Read more

DIS-103Planning effective exercises This material is adapted from ARECC EC003, Learning Unit 7. The learning unit is based inpart on a QST article by George Washburn, WA6YYM, District Emergency Coordinator andChief Radio Officer of Santa Clara County, California. IntroductionDrills, exercises, tests. By any name, periodic exercises are used to evaluate the effectiveness of training and … Read more

DIS-101DLesson 4RRT’s and Other Abbreviations EXCERPTED from District 14 Emergency Communications Plan (DIS-101)Prepared Oct. 7, 2017 by KE5JBWRevised 1/2017 Tonight’s training is taken primarily from Section 12 of the District 14 Emergency Communications Plan and from Appendix E of the Plan. RRT’s:Most ARES® units employ some form of rapid response team (RRT). In some areas … Read more

DIS-101CLesson 3An Introduction to theDistrict 14 Emergency Plan EXCERPTED from District 14 Emergency Communications Plan (DIS-101)Prepared Oct. 6, 2017 by KE5JBWRevised 01/2018 Tonight’s training is taken from Section 2 of the District 14 Emergency Communications Plan and is about our status and responsibilities as volunteers and also about the administrative structures regarding District and Unit … Read more