Amateur radio, or HAM radio, is a non-commercial frequency spectrum used by a range of individuals and emergency management agencies. When all else fails during disaster situations or public crises, it's often only amateur radio operators who can communicate.
Bob Spears, with Daviess County Amateur Radio Emergency Services, will teach the three classes, the first of which starts at 8 a.m. Saturday at the Emergency Operations Center in the Daviess County Courthouse.
Radio, he said, is a far-reaching genre of technology that encompasses so much of what people depend on every day. Operators can communicate on amateur frequencies using their voices, digital media and even video through fast- and slow-scan television.
Each class will give interested participants the opportunity to learn more about general electronics, Federal Communications Commission rules and regulations, and the specifics needed to pass the one-time exam. The Amateur Radio License exam will take place at 1 p.m. Jan. 28 at the courthouse. The classes are free and open to the public.
"This is a great opportunity for people who want to have access to communication when nothing else is working -- no power, no land lines, no cell service," he said. "We use amateur radio waves to get the word out when everything else is down."
Spears operates four regional Winlink nodes in Daviess, Hancock and Ohio counties that even allow operators to send email messages back and forth via low-power frequencies. County EMA Director Andy Ball said radios in his own truck or at the communications center must be Project 25-compliant, meaning they are formated to communicate with all public safety and mutual aid response teams such as police departments, fire stations and more.
Ball, a U.S. Air Force veteran, said there was a time in safety communication where it was difficult for something such as a National Guard unit to keep in touch with local fire safety crews, because there were few regulations between different sets of radio operating equipment. That makes disaster scenarios all the more chaotic, he said.
"Communications play a huge role in what we do," he said. "It's probably the single most important part of emergency response."
After Saturday, the other two amateur radio class sessions will start at the same time Jan. 21 and 28 in the courthouse.
Those interested in registering or who want more information are encouraged to contact Daviess County EMA at 270-685-8448 or Spears at 270-302-8303.
Austin Ramsey, 270-691-7302, aramsey@messenger-inquirer.com, Twitter: @austinrramsey
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