At least 54 people were killed and hundreds injured Tuesday and Wednesday by dozens of tornadoes that plowed across Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama in the nation's deadliest barrage of twisters in almost 23 years. In spite of the disasters, state and local emergency management officials once again discovered that they could call on Amateur Radio operators to help out and get communications up and going again after the infrastructure failed.
According to ARRL Southeastern Division Director Greg Sarratt, W4OZK, "Four people were killed in Alabama as the storms damaged homes, caused flooding and downed trees and power lines. North Alabama SKYWARN, ARES and scores of Amateur Radio operators were up all night long, providing vital communications to the National Weather Service and Emergency Management Agencies all across the region. Once again, Amateur Radio operators played a critical role before, during and after the storms. I am proud of the level of professionalism and critical information that these operators provided our served agencies."
Tennessee
Tennessee Section Emergency Coordinator Lowell Bennington, WD4DJW, said that approximately 25 hams in Madison County had participating in SKYWARN activities before the storm arrived; one ham actually spotted the twister. "Two hams reported to the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency-West, assisting in passing radio communication. A couple of hams assisted Madison County EMA in setting up their Mobile Command Post. On Wednesday, 10 teams were dispatched to do Damage Assessment. These teams were composed of 3 individuals, one of whom was an Amateur Radio operator," he said.
Bennington said that hams in Middle Tennessee "utilized our vast networks of linked 2 meter repeater systems as well as our UHF-linked system in support of the National Weather Service, Tennessee Emergency Management, law enforcement agencies and participating local EMA offices. Operators from Wilson County were dispatched to the Nashville NWS office and they operated from there until around 3:30 AM Thursday, giving and taking weather reports."
Alabama
Alabama ARES District 6 Emergency Coordinator Doug Hilton, WD0UG, said his area was hit hard by a fast-moving line of severe weather; District 6 covers the Northern counties of Alabama. Hilton contacted the NWS office in Huntsville early Wednesday regarding possible SKYWARN activation. "After discussing the situation with NWS personnel, it was decided that since this was going to be a long event, that would probably last all night, it was best not to tie up the local repeaters early on. I opened an informal SKYWARN net to get weather information out to the amateur community during the afternoon, and several Madison County hams participated in the net. We closed the net after about an hour and re-opened it that evening at 7," he said. Madison County ARES was activated that evening and other hams in the area joined in. Hilton said Northern Alabama has a linked-repeater system that covers all 10 counties during emergency conditions.
Hilton said hams were able to provide many timely situation reports, "and 'ground truth' is always the best indicator of reality. Many of the hams who stayed up all night were also prepared to leave their homes at a moment's notice to go anywhere in the District, if needed. The incredible teamwork of this ARES/SKYWARN team and the level of professionalism was something to behold."
Kentucky
Chris Shaw, W4BGN, Kentucky District Emergency Coordinator, said several confirmed tornadoes touched down throughout his state. "Kentucky hams activated weather nets, while others were out and about spotting for severe weather. Allen and Monroe Counties in South Central Kentucky were especially hard hit. Some repeaters lost power and hams quickly adapted, going to emergency simplex frequencies on 2 meters. The communications went very smooth and seemed to be beneficial to many. Hams worked throughout the night to help provide communications, especially to those areas without power."
Source: ARRL website
Edited by: 9w2aam
