Paul Smith

KNW-117NVIS – Near Vertical Incidence Skywave Near Vertical Incidence Skywave (NVIS) refers to a radio propagation mode which involves the use of antennas with a very high radiation angle, approaching or reaching 90 degrees (straight up), along with selection of an appropriate frequency below the critical frequency, to establish reliable communications over a radius of … Read more

KNW-115GETTING TO KNOW YOUR RADIO Edited09/2022 by Paul Smith, K5PRSRevised 12/2020 Knowing how to access the basic functions on the radios that you use during an emergency response is an important skill as emergency communicators. There have been several incidents during public service events where an operator could not change a parameter such as frequency, … Read more

KNW-112Go-Bag Contents The Go-Bag is a set of pre-prepared, portable containers, often on wheels, that contain all of the ‘stuff’ you will need to survive a given event. It can be very simple if deployment is to an established EOC like ‘Transtar’ with pre-positioned radios, antennas, power (including backup generators), toilet facilities, etc. or it … Read more

KNW-111Portable Generators Edited 09/2022 by Paul Smith, K5PRS Portable Electric Generator Safety TipsPortable electric generators offer great benefits when outages affect your home or are used remotely during Public Service Events or disaster recovery. Below are guidelines for safely connecting and operating portable generators: Use the proper power cords. How big a generator do you … Read more

SAF-115Disaster Driving – ARES Style Adapted and modified Revised 11/2016 for theGulf Coast area by Earl Pack – AE5PA.Original article by Ron Dodson – KA4MAP Kentucky Amateur Radioedited by Paul Smith (K5PRS) on 05 Aug 2025 As a member of a local ARES team, you may find yourself sitting in the “shack” at your home, … Read more

SAF-114Preparing To Shelter In Place During A Radiation Emergency Modified from an original Mecklenburg CountyARES training article When we think about and prepare for emergency situations that might confront our own families and our communities, we may not immediately recognize and appreciate the very real and potential hazard presented by incidents involving radiation. Tonight’s preparedness … Read more

SAF-113PERSONAL SAFETY Modified from a Waller County ARES training articleWritten by Christine Smith, N5CAS (sk) Emergency communication volunteers may become so involved with helping others that they forget about their own families and themselves. The needs of victims may seem so large when compared with your own that you may feel guilty even taking a … Read more

SAF-112Lightning safety Modified from original Mecklenburg County ARES training article by Earl Pack, AE5PA Avoid Dangerous Situations Shelter from the lightning If someone is struck by lightning Protecting your Radio Equipment from lightning. There is a very good set of articles on the Harris County ARES Training page about this subject. That concludes tonight’s training. … Read more

SAF-111Why lives Are Lost inSever Weather Conditions Author UnknownEdited 09/2022 to Optimize Cell Phone Displayby Paul Smith, K5PRS Many lives are saved during severe weather such as tornadoes, hurricanes, forest fires, etc. thanks to modern, advanced warnings, there are still countless lives lost. Why? “The tornado that struck Joplin offers important lessons about disaster preparedness,” … Read more

SAF-110Amateur Radio And Electrical Safety Author Unknown As part of our licensing process, electrical safety is covered in the training material however electrical injuries and incidents continue to occur. A motto of a very experienced-major world wide company is that “All incidents can be avoided”. At first you may think this is an impossible statement … Read more