Big Island ARRL News, 29 December 2016, 17:55 hrs, UTC, Post #81.

Source:

http://www.scnews.com/news/article_b86f2130-c95c-11e6-9621-0397016c08f4.html

http://www.eham.net/articles/38316.

Accessed on 29 December 2016, 17:55 hrs, UTC.

Reporter:  Jeremiah O’Hagan (“Standwood Camano News”).

Please click link to read the full story.

Comment:

Amateur Radio operators stand ready to help their communities in time of disaster. Whether it be assisting emergency management officials in Hawaii during tsunamis or earthquakes or planning for the devastating earthquake that will happen in the Puget Sound area of Washington State (the topic of this article), radio amateurs will provide the necessary skills to maintain emergency communications for their distressed communities.

In this article from the “Standwood Camano News”, reporter Jeremiah O’Hagan does an excellent job of describing how this small Puget Sound community in Washington state is preparing for a major shift in the Cascadia Fault that could leave the small town isolated for weeks.

According to reporter O’Hagan, leaders of the Camano Preparedness Group are training CERT (Community Emergency Teams) volunteers in subjects ranging from basic medical and triage care to maintaining emergency communications with the “outside world.”

Camano Community Group leaders Ryan and Bill Swander say Amateur Radio operators will play an important part in keeping the small community intact.

“There are over 100 ham radio operators on the island,” Swander said. “That two-way communication is important for people’s morale and psyche.”

“Recently, people from Warm Beach, Smokey Point, Stanwood and Port Townsend have contacted Camano Preparedness Group for information about starting their own versions of the organization.

Ryan and Swander said the bottom line is that Camano Preparedness Group wants to prepare people for whatever happens. Even if the Cascadia Fault doesn’t break, “Mother Nature can throw a lot of things our way,” Ryan said.

The group meets the second Thursday each month from 7-9 p.m. at the Vista/Madrona Fire Station on Camano Island. Meetings are open to “anybody who’ll sit still long enough,” Swander said.

For more information, visit camanopreparednessgroup.org.”