Emcomm gets APT and MARS attention
The International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) helped to further raise awareness of the role of Amateur Radio during times of natural disasters caused by extreme weather events and man-made failure of communication infrastructure.
Also later this month the US-based Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS) will join with Amateur Radio in Asia in an exercise to test emergency communication availability and usefulness.
At the 4th APT (Asia Pacific Telecommunity) Workshop on Disaster Management & Communications held last month the IARU and Philippines Amateur Radio Society (PARA) gave a presentation.
IARU Region 3 Chairman Gopal Madhavan VU2GMN and Ramon Anquilan DU1UGZ of
PARA were well received by delegates at the meeting in Pasay City, Philippines on July 23–25.
The pair was asked questions about Amateur Radio and how it helped keep the lines open during severe weather events, including those that plagued the Philippines, and gave update to date and informed responses.
The APT acknowledged the continued support and expertise provided by radio amateurs and wanted to hear more in future through the IARU R3 as part of the APT work program.
IARU Region 3 appreciated the opportunity to contribute to the further understanding of the wider community, the role that Amateur Radio can play in providing communications during major disruptions during disasters.
Meanwhile MARS will join Amateur Radio in Asia on August 26 in a unique test the capacity to assist in the event of a major transpacific disaster.
Exercise Pacific Endeavor-13 is in response to the lessons learned in Japan’s 2011 tsunami catastrophe.
MARS will use emergency standards recommended by the IARU. In the exercise scenario, volunteer MARS members will establish communication with radio amateurs in fictitious ‘Pacifica’, which is actually Nepal.
The avoid undue alarm, the MARS stations using Amateur Radio callsigns located in Okinawa, Japan and Hawaii, will talk about a sporting event during their message handling which may include images.
The MARS exercise follows the Singapore Armed Forces hosted Pacific Endeavour 2012 on the Changi Naval Base which linked Nepal authorities through Amateur Radio.
Emergency communication measures involving Amateur Radio are in place should a predicted earthquake occur in the future within the vicinity of Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu.
- Jim Linton VK3PC, Chairman IARU Region 3 Disaster Communications Committee.