Big Island ARRL News, 10 November 2017, 2140 UTC, Post #368.
Source:
http://wlrn.org/post/when-all-else-fails-south-florida-emergency-personnel-use-radio-to-communicate
Reporter: Peter Harden (WLRN TV, Miami, Florida).
Please click link to read the full report and to listen to an audio clip of the interview.
Accessed on 10 November 2017, 2140 UTC.
Comment:
The interview between WLRN TV reporter Peter Harden and Broward County (Florida) Emergency Coordinator, Jeff Stahl (K4BH), is an example of how our broadcast media can support Amateur Radio without sounding flashy and “over the top.” The interview describes how South Florida radio amateurs responded to several hurricane threats over the past four months and how they helped emergency management personnel maintain vital communications while cell towers and electric power were down.
Perhaps most telling in the interview was Stahl’s answer to those who have misunderstand how radio amateurs contribute to the well-being and safety of their neighbors, state, and country:
“Well, I think people think that it’s old, it’s useless, nobody does it anymore. That couldn’t be farther from the truth.”
“I’ve been doing this for 47 years and I still have stuff to learn. There are classes all the time if you want to get a license. We set up radios at the Boy Scout camp, Camp Tanna Ketah in Martin County. They bring in scouts that are working on their radio merit badge. We show them amateur radio. We let them talk on the radios. They have to talk for 10 minutes to somebody to get their merit badge.”
“We try to attract some young people in this hobby. Everybody’s starting to look like me, with the gray hair and the medical problems. So we’re trying to get some younger people interested.”
A great, positive article from a major broadcast outlet.
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Thanks for joining us today.
Aloha es 73 de
Russell Roberts (KH6JRM)
Public Information Coordinator
Hawaii County, ARRL Pacific Section