EMCOMM and public safety systems

[AK_SAR]

Lately, there has been some debate about the continuing relevance, or lack thereof, of the EMCOMM role of Ham radio. Many people seem to focus on the fact that in recent hurricane events, the Houston area suffered no major outage of cell or public service networks. People have claimed that the cell system is now so robust, public safety communications networks are so reliable, and with the coming of FirstNet, that there is little likelihood that Ham radio will be ever called upon for an meaningful EMCOMM role.

Last week I was down in the Pacific Northwest, visiting family. Late at night on Dec 27, I got an emergency alert on my cell phone, that 911 service was unavailable. It seems 911 was out in much of Washington state, and also in several other western states as well.
See https://www.geekwire.com/2018/widespread-911-outage-hits-washington-emergency-alerts-sent-smartphones-friday-night
Century 21 hasn't given many details about the specific cause, but some reports claim a single network card sending bad packets:
https://www.tomshardware.com/news/centurylink-outage-caused-bad-networking-card,38306.html

While a 911 outage is not something that Ham radio would be able to deal with, this outage does speak to how vulnerable our public safety systems really are. You can harden individual cell sites till the cows come home, but a single point of failure can still disable an entire emergency system over a large swath of the country. And note that this appears to be a garden variety hardware failure. In this age of cyber war, we also need to think about what could happen if these systems were under malicious attack.

Here in Alaska, not long ago we had a mini version of this. A single powerline transformer failure cut power to GCI, one of our major communication providers. This knocked out internet for many parts of the state. GCI had a back up power system, but a single switch in the GCI system failed. It took hours to fix the problem.

These kinds of failures, along with hurricane damage to power and cell systems in Florida, indicates to me that there is still a valid and important role for Ham EMCOMM. While cell, internet, and public safety systems in many parts of the country have achieved a high degree of reliability, the complexity and interdependence of these systems means that there are still multiple points of failure.

Don't drop out of ARES and/or RACES just yet!

 

[k6cpo]

And what you didn't mention was how easily the cell networks can become overloaded, even in the best of times. When my wife graduated from the local university, every single graduate who paraded into the arena was on their cell phone. "Here I am, mom." I looked at my phone and I had no signal at all. If I had needed to call 911 at that moment, I wouldn't have been able to.

 

[KE0GXN]

I see no reason not have a cadre of amateurs trained in EMCOMM and I don't see it it going away anytime soon, Florida and Puerto Rico proved that.

What I have seen so far in my short time within ARES is the lack of or abundance of local relationships within the various group areas. Some groups have well coordinated relationships with their local authorities and others do not. It seems some county EMs welcome the assistance of amateurs and some EMs will not have nothing to do with them. Whether is a perceived"whacker" biased by some EMs or just the plain fact they believe they have no use or will ever need amateur radio to assist them....

 

[AK_SAR]

And what you didn't mention was how easily the cell networks can become overloaded, even in the best of times. When my wife graduated from the local university, every single graduate who paraded into the arena was on their cell phone. "Here I am, mom." I looked at my phone and I had no signal at all. If I had needed to call 911 at that moment, I wouldn't have been able to.

Yes, that is also a big issue. Our state SAR coordinator commented that he went to the Alaska State EOC when our recent M 7.0 earthquake happened. He had two cell phones (different providers), and was unable to make voice calls on either. He was able to do text messages on one cell network. This was entirely due to the cell networks being overloaded. While the quake caused some short term power outages, to my knowledge the cellular networks suffered no significant hardware damage.

What I have seen so far in my short time within ARES is the lack of or abundance of local relationships within the various group areas. Some groups have well coordinated relationships with their local authorities and others do not. It seems some county EMs welcome the assistance of amateurs and some EMs will not have nothing to do with them. Whether is a perceived "whacker" biased by some EMs or just the plain fact they believe they have no use or will ever need amateur radio to assist them....

It is really a matter of trust. Any volunteer emergency service, be it mountain rescue, ARES, or whatever needs to demonstrate to the local authorities that they can follow orders, do the tasks asked, and in general be an asset rather than a liability. It takes tact, patience, and effort to build these relationships. But it can be done. Of course a few whackers can do a lot of damage to these relationships. And sometimes local officials seem to be afraid that accepting help from volunteer groups somehow implies the officials are not up to the job themselves.

And volunteers need to understand that they will be required to take some training beyond just radio stuff. For example basic level ICS training is pretty much the expected standard anymore in any sort of emergency response. And you need to be ready to accept tasks that may not be what you wanted or expected. I've heard of Hams who got mad and went home when asked to do something non radio related. You might have put a lot of thought, time, and money into building your "go box" radio. And you get called out to an incident expecting to use it, but the LSC says "Right now what I really need is someone to block off the far end of the parking lot, and stay there to keep people out, because in about 20 minutes some helicopters are going to start landing..." And your correct answer is "Yes sir, I'll get right on it!" Emergency response is not about you. It is about successfully managing the incident with the minimum loss of life, limb or property.

 

[AK9R]

I suggest that the term AUXCOMM for Auxiliary Communications be used instead of EMCOMM. For the most part, amateur radio operators, including me, are not capable of performing real-time, mission-critical emergency communications. They don't have the training (three or four on-line ICS courses is simply not enough) nor are they mentally or physically prepared to perform at 100% in a true emergency.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Emergency Communications has put together training materials for AUXCOMM and several state emergency management agencies and homeland security departments have offered this training to amateur radio operators. When I took it, it was a 2-day course taught by OEC and Tennessee EMA folks. Lots of good information that really opened some eyes about how amateur radio operators can be truly useful in a communications emergency.

Put yourself in the shoes of professional emergency communications managers. Could it be that "amateur radio emcomm" is offensive to them?

The OEC folks also shined a light on the ARRL's mantra of "when all else fails". They stated that a better motto might be "when all else gets overloaded, maybe amateur radio can handle some low priority traffic". Of course, the revised motto doesn't fit as well on a license plate frame.

 

[AK_SAR]

I suggest that the term AUXCOMM for Auxiliary Communications be used instead of EMCOMM.

I agree. This is a good point, and AUXCOMM will probably be the proper term going forward. An AUXCOMM course was recently held in our area. Unfortunately, I was already committed to attend a SAR related workshop, and was unable to attend. However, I have been able to look over the AUXFOG manual, and it looks like an excellent class. That class, along with the basic ICS sequence, will no doubt become the starting point for Hams who are interested in emergency services.

For the most part, amateur radio operators, including me, are not capable of performing real-time, mission-critical emergency communications. They don't have the training (three or four on-line ICS courses is simply not enough) nor are they mentally or physically prepared to perform at 100% in a true emergency.

I disagree with this point. There is no reason that properly trained, highly motivated, dedicated, and well led Hams can't perform at a very high level. My background is in the volunteer wilderness SAR community, and I see people on missions working at a very high level all the time, in stressful and potentially life threatening situations. In many cases, they are at least as good, and often better at it than the "official" responders. What it does require is getting out of the amateur radio mindset ("I'm only here to do radio stuff") and getting into an emergency management mindset ("My specialty is comms, but I'm willing to do whatever needs doing to resolve this situation."). And it also requires a willingness to train in areas that may not be directly radio related.

 

[prcguy]

Hopefully not to be confused with the US Coast Guard Auxiliary "AUXCOM" specialty communications course.

I suggest that the term AUXCOMM for Auxiliary Communications be used instead of EMCOMM. For the most part, amateur radio operators, including me, are not capable of performing real-time, mission-critical emergency communications. They don't have the training (three or four on-line ICS courses is simply not enough) nor are they mentally or physically prepared to perform at 100% in a true emergency.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Emergency Communications has put together training materials for AUXCOMM and several state emergency management agencies and homeland security departments have offered this training to amateur radio operators. When I took it, it was a 2-day course taught by OEC and Tennessee EMA folks. Lots of good information that really opened some eyes about how amateur radio operators can be truly useful in a communications emergency.

Put yourself in the shoes of professional emergency communications managers. Could it be that "amateur radio emcomm" is offensive to them?

The OEC folks also shined a light on the ARRL's mantra of "when all else fails". They stated that a better motto might be "when all else gets overloaded, maybe amateur radio can handle some low priority traffic". Of course, the revised motto doesn't fit as well on a license plate frame.

 

[AK_SAR]

Hopefully not to be confused with the US Coast Guard Auxiliary "AUXCOM" specialty communications course.

I don't know anything about the USCG Auxiliary course. What does it cover? I presume it is only available for USCG Auxiliary members?

The Department of Homeland Security AUXFOG I mentioned is available online at:
https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/f...une 2016 - 508 Reviewed - Final (2-16-17).pdf

 

[K7MFC]

I suggest that the term AUXCOMM for Auxiliary Communications be used instead of EMCOMM.

I like the term "AUXCOMM" - I think it more accurately describes the role of an amateur radio operator regarding communications in times of emergency or disaster. Holding an amateur radio license does not confer any rights or responsibilities as a first responder. However, that doesn't mean an amateur radio operator's service and skill cannot provide value, nor does it mean they cannot posses any additional emergency training or certification and provide assistance in other ways. Radio communications is just one element of emergency/disaster response.

 

[DaveNF2G]

The examples cited seem to be about cellphone and data networks, not actual public safety radio communication systems. Apples and oranges.

 

[W5GX]

If we're going to add one letter to go from EMCOMM to AUXCOMM, might as well be more descriptive and just use HAMCOMM.

 

[prcguy]

Be careful not to confuse that with HAMCOM, which is a hamster fest in Plano, TX.

If we're going to add one letter to go from EMCOMM to AUXCOMM, might as well be more descriptive and just use HAMCOMM.

 

[mmckenna]

An interesting discussion...

There's a couple of issues with relying on commercial cellular networks:
1. most importantly, they are -commercial-, and the primary focus of the companies that run them is increasing profits and paying dividends to the share holders. Any other imagined or claimed benefit is just marketing hype. People/agencies that buy marketing hype get exactly what they are paying for.
2. Cellular networks are fragile. They mostly rely on commercial power. Yes, a couple hours of battery backup on site, but battery maintenance is low priority. Some (not all) have an onsite generator. A couple hours to a couple of days worth of fuel, if you are lucky. The cellular sites all rely on backhaul to work. If the connection back to the MSO fails, it's just a control channel yelling into the wind.
3. Cellular phones have given up reliability for convenience. Most consumer cell phones do not have a field replaceable battery (yes, I know some of the FirstNet type handsets do). Most don't have provisions for an external antenna (again, I know the FirstNet type handsets do). Most are designed for fitting in a pocket well, not working well on the fringes of coverage.

People/agencies rely on cellular phones way too much. It's become a consumer product, and the thought has been replaced by easy access and a perceived level of reliability.
In the discussion above, it was mentioned of SAR coordinator in the state EOC and not being able to get a call through. That makes me wonder if he/she had WPS set up on the phone and knew how to use it? One issue I've run across is that there are some useful tools to help improve the usability of cellular phones in an emergency, but most people don't have or don't know how to use them. GETS is free. WPS is usually free, or extremely cheap, depending on the carrier/contract.

FirstNet might improve things a little bit, but even they won't claim Five 9's reliability. FirstNet is still mostly built over the top of the existing AT&T network. Mostly the same sites, similar back haul, similar power. Any agency that puts all their communications requirements on FirstNet is going to probably have to revisit the decision at some point.

LMR networks are not perfect, either. They can fail. One benefit is that if the agency (or agencies) own the system, they have some control over getting it restored. Cellular carriers might promise COLT's, COW's, or quick response, but it'll never likely be on the same level of a good radio tech on site restoring an LMR system.


As for amateur radio, it's got its place. However, like was mentioned, ARRL and some amateurs need to get off the "emergency"/"When all else fails" thing.
In a 911 system failure, hams, as stated, are not going to be able to do much. Yeah, Bob could go stand out on a street corner with a sign and an HT, but I doubt it's going to have much impact. Good to try, but probably not something the amateur radio community should be marketing.
As for radio system failures, a lot has changed since the old days when one simplex frequency was all some agencies had. Time to move on.

And "Whackerism" did a lot of damage. I know a few agencies that don't want anything to do with amateur radio operators in the middle of their operations. Too much risk with a volunteers, lack of background checks, etc.

Auxcomm would be the way to go, and the way DHS has things set up. Amateur radio can be useful in an emergency, but rather than the ham community/ARRL trying to make themselves into some self appointed first responders, they need to keep things in perspective.

 

[MTS2000des]

AUXCOMM is the new RACES 2.0 and the only practical way for governments to utilize communications volunteer resources. It is proper vetting, training and certification of personnel. It forces the "orange vest" crowd to leave their attitude and self-appointed authority at the door. One should be there to serve the served agency as requested, and do as they are instructed, not barking orders or blowing farts of how many hours of community service they do, how ham radio saves the day, government folks are all stupid because Joe Ham is an extra class ARES EC. etc.

 

[W5GX]

Be careful not to confuse that with HAMCOM, which is a hamster fest in Plano, TX.

True!

 

[robertmac]

I'll repeat what I have said in another thread. In this case, most cellphone, phone and internet services went down. It was not in a high population area as not all disasters restrict themselves to densely populated areas. However, it did affect a city of over 12000 people of which almost all were evacuated.
Please don't brush all amateur radio operators with the same brush. In my area amateurs have been come forward to answer calls for help when floods hit a city and left it with little communications available to outside areas. Amateur radio operators over 200 kms volunteered to help get service to a hospital and to out lying evacuation centres. They were some of the first people responding when the communications went down. In fact, there has been 3 years in the past 15 years where calls went out for assistance when flooding was immanent and amateur radio operators came forward to offer 24 hour help. And these amateurs were working along side RCMP, SAR, Fire in EOCs. So not all of us are "hobbyists". In all of these events the amateurs were treated as team members. Call it what you want, but we are available when the call goes out.

 

[DaveNF2G]

Let's also remember that the USA is not Canada, and that every state and province is different.

 

[robertmac]

Let's also remember that the USA is not Canada, and that every state and province is different.

And thus the reason I stated small city as opposed to large city where not all will be affected, usually. But a reason to point out that not all amateur radio is negative.

 

[mmckenna]

But a reason to point out that not all amateur radio is negative.

I agree, not all amateur radio is negative.

Amateur radio on its own is a hobby, and a pretty good one at that. However, what I think people above are getting at is that amateur radio, on its own, should not be confused with public safety.
The days of a "radio operator" as a specialist that was needed to operate complex equipment are just about gone in most applications. Public safety systems are a lot more reliable and more capable than they were 20, 30 or 50 years ago. With HF/ALE, satellite phones, satellite terminals, etc. it's really easy for communications to be restored after a disaster by someone without an amateur license, or even a lot of technical training.
Yes, there's still a place for amateur radio in all this, absolutely, but it's not what it was in years past.

What I really like to see is amateur radio used as a tool. Like any good craftsman, they have more than one tool in their tool box. If all a person has is a radio and nothing else, then it limits what they can do. Sort of like "if the only tool in the tool box is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a nail". I'd love to see amateur radio operators as a public resource expand their capabilities beyond operating a two way radio. I'd challenge amateur radio clubs to do CPR, First Aid, First Responder, CERT courses, etc. Something to add more tools to the tool box. I've got a recently retired friend that is a ham. He joined his local search and rescue squad. He's pretty active in that. Amateur radio is ONE of his tools. Not his only tool.

Public safety professionals are not just people that get paid to carry a radio, they have a lot of training, experience, tools, and capabilities at hand. Before I can continue to acknowledge amateur radio as a public safety resource, I'd want to see them do more. The days of needing someone to sit there and operate a radio are starting to disappear. Will amateur radio remain relevant in disaster recovery, or will they be replaced with satellite phones, robust radio systems and easy HF communications?

 

[surfacemount]

In the discussion above, it was mentioned of SAR coordinator in the state EOC and not being able to get a call through. That makes me wonder if he/she had WPS set up on the phone and knew how to use it? One issue I've run across is that there are some useful tools to help improve the usability of cellular phones in an emergency, but most people don't have or don't know how to use them. GETS is free. WPS is usually free, or extremely cheap, depending on the carrier/contract.

GETS is free. WPS is $4.50 a month per line, and up to $0.75/min per call. You can stack WPS and GETS, but then there are other, carrier-specific issues.