FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Amateur
Radio Operators Annual Field Day
June 6, 2003
The amateur radio operators that support local emergency operations will conduct their annual field day Saturday, June 28 and Sunday June 29, at Old Fort Townsend. Please take a moment to drop by the event and show your support to this important emergency response resource. Experience amateur radio capabilities under "emergency" conditions, and see how it plays such an important role in disaster response.
Here is a note from Gary Fell (ARES/RACES Emergency Coordinator) describing the activities:
"Field Day is an annual national event held on the last full weekend in June. The main purpose of Field Day is for amateur radio operators to fine tune their communications skills by contacting as many other stations as they can in a 24 hour period. All this is done under simulated emergency conditions, utilizing emergency power and antennas erected just for the event. The conditions would be very similar to a disaster where access to the "normal" ham station was not possible and there was no commercial power available. The Field Day slogan this year is: When all else fails.
"We will be communicating using voice on FM and Single Side Band, Several Digital Modes, Slow Scan TV, Satellites, and old fashioned CW with Morse Code.
"We will be set up in Old Fort Townsend and will be on the air from 11:00 am on Saturday, June 28th through 11:00 am on June 29th. We will have a special station where non amateurs can, under the supervision of a ham, try their hand at contacting other stations.
"This is how it would look if Jefferson County had a big problem and needed to have a sustained communications capability to backup impaired "first line" communications.
"We invite everyone -but especially those who we may someday be working with - to come by and visit us and see what it's all about."
Regards, Gary Fell