Amateur radio disaster preparedness in action

[k6cpo]

Absolutely. Also, cars with flashy lights..... ARES: "Maximum Whack, minimum help"

Now you're generalizing.

Each ARES groups is a separate entity, pretty much autonomous except for some basic rules set by the league. I'm sure there are some that are like you describe, but my experience has been entirely different. I'm currently the Public Information Officer for the ARES organization in the San Diego, CA section. Our served agency is the San Diego County Hospital System. Our job is to go into the hospitals to provide backup communications in the event of a disaster or mass casualty event. To this end we participate in twice-yearly state-mandated drills with the hospitals. We provide WinLink and VHF/UHF voice communications.

For identification purposes we wear yellow golf shirts with the ARES logo on them. Occasionally we'll have someone that doesn't have a shirt so they will wear a vest so the hospital personnel know who they are. We are all required to have taken the basic ICS courses and are encouraged to take advanced training. For instance, I have 144 hours of training, both online and in-person, that led to a Public Information Officer Specialist Certificate issued by the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services.

So, as you can see, not all ARES groups are composed of those that put on their yellow vest, slung their Baofeng radio on their hip, and said "I'm ready." Some of us are actually well-trained and are requested to participate.

 

[buddrousa]

No, in Oklahoma, only authorized emergency vehicles, like ambulances with proper markings, are allowed to use flashing red lights, meaning an "on-call" doctor would not be permitted to run red lights unless their vehicle is officially designated as an emergency vehicle and they are responding to a true emergency situation.

 

[rf_patriot200]

They should have none of these things. Their only purpose is providing radio communication.

That depends of course on your level of training .