www.arrl.org/ares-el?issue=2012-03-21

ARRL's EPM Corey on FEMA Think Tank Call

On February 17, ARRL Emergency Preparedness Manager Mike Corey, KI1U, and Henry Katz, KB3NYW, of Baltimore County, Maryland participated as presenters in FEMA's Think Tank Conference Call. The conference was hosted by FEMA Deputy Administrator Richard Serino from city hall in San Francisco, California.

In attendance at City Hall were representatives from FEMA, local and state emergency management, NGO's, and the private sector. An audience of over 400 from around the country also participated via teleconference.

The focus of the Think Tank conference call was the use of technology and social media in emergency management. The two specific topics discussed were:

(1) How to communicate with disaster survivors and distribute information to mass audiences if cellular and on-line communications are unavailable immediately following a catastrophic disaster; in particular, how existing communications tools, such as Amateur Radio operators, can be leveraged and linked to other forms of mass communications following a disaster; and

(2) How mobile applications can help emergency managers and individuals prepare for, respond to, and quickly recover from disasters.

Katz presented an overview of the Amateur Radio Service while Corey presented how radio amateurs relay vital messages during a disaster and how Amateur Radio works in conjunction with new technologies such as the Internet and social media.

Following the presentations there was time for the audience to make comments and ask questions. The feedback received was good and the Deputy Administrator summed it up by saying "They're not Amateurs but they are very much professionals."

For more information on the Amateur Radio portion of the FEMA Think Tank Conference Call see www.fema.gov/thinktank/.