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    I would like to wish everyone a Happy and Prosperous New Year. Also I hope the band condx will improve at least enough so we can copy what’s going on during the WSN/1 Net. We had 5 good days in a row during December and it really was a welcome change.

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Their was not much Third Party Traffic for any of the holidays. We did not even have any Santa Grams from the kids to Santa at the North Pole. The last 2 years we had around 100 each year. It was a big disappointment this year not to get any at all.

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EmComm PMBO (Emergency Communications Participating Mail Box Operator) Station consists of:
Kenwood TS480sat at 100 watts
Antennas 80 & 40 Inverted vee, 30 meter Vertical.
SCS PTCII USB modem
Laptop computer
PMBO call N7YRT
Frequencies: 3589c/7101.2c P3/7076.9c P1&2 /10141.2c
Put into operation Dec 17, 2007
On air operation 22-23 /7
Objective:
Ability to send and receive e-mail via HF Pactor 1, 2, &3 into and out of the normal Internet e-mail system for use by anyone able to connect. Main objective is to stay on air for use by anyone, and be on the air if needed during an event of any kind in our region....i.e. WA. OR., ID., MT., BC., AB, ON. and more.

Aside from e-mail the PMBO can and does accept messages between stations able to log on any where in the world (Log into the Winlink 2k system). For example, If Allen wanted to send a message to WB5NKC he would log on and “send” an email type message addressed to WB5NKC. It would be transferred via Internet to a Central Message Server (CMS) and from there be transferred to another PMBO where WB5NKC normally logs in. The next time he does so, that message would automatically be transferred to him there. If I should lose my Internet connection, then the PMBO would be a more local Mail box with the ability to transfer messages locally and with the possibility to transfer into another (more distant ) PMBO who might have Internet access.

This has been an exciting and rewarding adventure so far for me. And I look forward to many years of service ahead.
More info: look up on the Web Winlink.org

73
Happy New Year
Guy
N7YRT

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    Rick Colton W7SMC Became a Silent Key in December 2007. He was very active on the DRN/7, Noontime and WARTS Nets. He was a dedicated NTS Traffic Handler and will be greatly missed.

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    It has been decided by RN/7 and IMN members that 160 meters would work as a good Alternate Frequency. The option to change will be up to the NCS. One station will left behind to periodically announce the band change1840 Khz will be the Freq used.

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    As many of you have probably noticed, Joe Lee, W6DOB is no longer the NCS on Sunday evenings.  I would like to take this opportunity to thank Joe on behalf of all of us who have had the pleasure of working with him on the nets for decades.  He leaves behind a legacy of service to NTS and to NCN/RN-6 in particular.  Joe’s dedication and support have reflected the best aspects of this part of the amateur radio. I trust that we will still however, have the pleasure of passing Joe’s regular traffic supporting the 18th Airborne reunion.  Airborne Always Joe!

Joe’s NCS slot has been taken over by Bob Ringwald, K6YBV.  Please join me in welcoming him into this assignment. 

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As earlier reported, Western Washington was hit by extreme winds and torrential rains that have caused wide spread power and communications outages and disastrous flooding conditions.  The Southwest Washington Counties of Pacific, Grays Harbor, Lewis and Mason have been hit the hardest.  A gust of wind exceeding 100 miles per hour toppled a main
high tension line tower that served the Grays Harbor area, plunging thousands of residents on the coast into total darkness.  Many repeater systems are off line, but Hams were responding quickly by bringing their home stations up on backup power.  In Lewis County, Coast Guard, Navy, National Guard and King County Sheriff Guardian II helicopters  flew rescue missions, through the night,  to pick people off of house tops and barns as the waters rose so quickly.

Pacific County ARES members have been manning the County EOC at South Bend, almost 24/7.  Ham radio has been the only reliable means of communications in the County since the land line and cell phones have been out of service.

While the City of Seattle Team was not officially activated to perform Radio Operations, the City's Office of Emergency Management did recruit interested Hams to staff the phones to take damage reports from citizens as a result of the storm

The Seattle Team sent 6 operators to NOAA Weather Radio to operate the Ham station to handle reports from the coastal area and elsewhere because power and phones were out in that area - the Team covered 3 shifts on Monday and Tuesday Morning.

Snohomish County RACES was activated at 18:00 on Dec. 3 by Snohomish Department of Emergency Management.  The team served in the EOC and communities until the recovery phase began.

The Thurston County ARES team was activated by the County's Department of Emergency Management on Tuesday, December 04, 2007 to support on going flood evacuation operations in Southwest Thurston County.  Incoming EC, Bart Tirrell, AB7AX is in charge of the operations and receiving his "Baptism by fire" before actually taking over the position on January 11, 2008.  The team staffed the County EOC RADIO ROOM in Olympia, and manned sites at the Rochester Fire Station, Rochester LDS Church (Evacuation Center) and at various "LZ's" (Landing Zones) for the helicopter rescue teams, using amateur radio to coordinate resources and limited tactical traffic between sites.  Hams were also primary operators on several county radio systems.  One of the Hams deployed was AB7AX, Bart, who was stationed at the  Rochester helicopter LZ all day Tuesday, even though he knew his own business, a Dental Practice in Centralia was in trouble from the high water; it turns out it was worse than expected; the building will have to be rebuilt.

The Team in Wahkiakum County provided the only communications for the county utilizing a repeater system called Beach Net, which provides communication along the Washington and Oregon Coasts.

The team for the Washington State Emergency Operations Center at Camp Murray was activated by the Division of Emergency Management at 11:00 on Monday, December 3 to proved communications to several City, County and Tribal EOCs, without telephone communications.

And the stories continue.  Some teams have been activated but have not had an opportunity to report.  Others such as the Lewis County Team (hardest hit by the flood) were cut off from traveling; however, when the local 147.06 repeater failed, Lewis County Hams got on simplex andHF frequencies to check on each other and putting themselves on standby for deployment when roads became passable.  Two Hams in the city, AC7UP Mike and AC7SR Bill were able to make it to the EOC and helped log data through the nights.

On Monday night December 4, Federal Way Hams responded to the emergency and when there were no radio assignments, they helped fill sand bags.

The rain has stopped for the moment, the rivers are receding and the recovery phase is in full swing.  Interstate 5 will open again and commerce will soon be underway again.  Life in Western Washington will soon be back to normal. 

The difficulty in preparing a report like this is that there are so many ARES/RACES members who participated in the response phase of this disaster and there will be many more working in the recovery phase, whose names and call I don't have.  But let me tell you about the Hams in Western Washington Section; they train the way they're going to respond and they respond the way they are trained.  Some will report to duty and never see a microphone but will make copies, log data, empty wastebaskets, direct vehicle traffic and fill sand bags ... what ever needs to be done, and never complain once.  One of the Oregon newspapers had a headline: Hams; the unsung heroes -- and I couldn't put it better. 

The news media will report on the disaster and show pictures of incredible rescues by the Coast Guard, Sheriff Officers and other responders -- and they should -- but my hat goes off to K7TAG, Ken and his well trained and organized ARES/RACES teams in Western Washington.  I am very proud of their efforts.

73

Jim Pace K7CEX
WWA  Section Manager

Note From WSN Mgr

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