Clay County "Hams" to demonstrate emergency communications

​(Hayesville, NC) Clay County amateur radio operators (commonly referred to as “hams”) who are members of Clay County Amateur Radio Emergency Service (“Clay County ARES”) and the Clay County chapter of North Carolina Auxiliary Emergency Communications (NC AUXCOMM), will demonstrate the latest technology in emergency communications (“EMCOMM”) on Saturday, June 27, 2020, between 12:00 noon and 5:00 PM, at the Clay County Rec Park Pavilion near the Spikebuck Cherokee Burial Mound, 333 Ball Park Drive, Hayesville, NC.

Children of all ages are invited to drop by and will be given an opportunity to “get on the air" through amateur radio.

June 27-28 is National Field Day for Amateur Radio operators nationwide. Throughout the US (and many foreign countries), ham radio operators will be setting up radio stations in unusual locations and making contact with others as a display of their emergency communications capabilities.

In recent years, Amateur Radio operators have made headlines with their work in the earthquakes, floods, hurricanes (e.g., Katrina), ice and snow storms, tornadoes, wildfires, and other crises that disrupt commercial and local emergency communications. These hams have provided emergency communications for many government and civic organizations during declared emergencies and national disasters. In addition, they provide supplemental communications when normal systems are rendered inoperable or overloaded. Amateur Radio has been correctly called the communications medium that works “When all else fails.”

Like most communities, Clay County doesn’t expect a major emergency. But such events do happen, and losing communications quickly can turn an emergency into a real disaster. The members of Clay County ARES/AUXCOMM work diligently in partnership with North Carolina Emergency Management and the federal Department of Homeland Security/FEMA to be prepared to provide back-up emergency communications if an emergency strikes here.

Brochures and other information about Amateur Radio and EMCOMM will be available through the Amateur Radio Relay League (“ARRL”), the national association for Amateur Radio.

For more information, please contact Larry J. Ford, Emergency Coordinator for Clay County ARES/AUXCOMM, at (828) 421-5721 or k4aec@arrl.net .