Seems like a silly question - but I was wondering what FRS activity sounds like during or right after a disaster?
Is it totally abandoned in a panic, or do you hear people using it for real things, other than kid chit-chat?
The other reason I ask this, is that while there are many fine services for disaster comms (amateur / gmrs etc), the sheer availability of both FRS radios and scanners makes me wonder if both could ever be put to good use?
What I'm thinking is that if someone was in trouble, and they aren't even technically savvy, that if they placed a call for help and didn't get a reply, that it *might* be possible that some scanner listeners, those with good outdoor antennas, might be able to at least transfer the plea for help to other agencies.
Situation: I'm down and not technically savvy - but someone once told me to just fire up the kids FRS radio, and at the top of the hour, make a call stating my location, situation etc. If no reply comes, try again in 5 minutes. If nothing heard then, shut down to save the battery, and try again at the top of the next hour.
This way, even if a scanner listener monitoring channel 1 FRS (default on FRS radio powerup) with an FRS radio could not reach the person needing help, they could at least *hear* the call, and possibly enlist the help of others.
What I'm thinking of is total brain-dead simplicity. Those with the knowledge to operate radios will obviously do so. But for mom and pop who remembered to just turn on the FRS unit, and make a call at the top of the hour, might be heard by a scanner listener with a good setup.
Is this just a pipe-dream, among all the other various schemes proposed over the years? Is it just an unusable bedlam of activity during these kinds of events?
Is it totally abandoned in a panic, or do you hear people using it for real things, other than kid chit-chat?
The other reason I ask this, is that while there are many fine services for disaster comms (amateur / gmrs etc), the sheer availability of both FRS radios and scanners makes me wonder if both could ever be put to good use?
What I'm thinking is that if someone was in trouble, and they aren't even technically savvy, that if they placed a call for help and didn't get a reply, that it *might* be possible that some scanner listeners, those with good outdoor antennas, might be able to at least transfer the plea for help to other agencies.
Situation: I'm down and not technically savvy - but someone once told me to just fire up the kids FRS radio, and at the top of the hour, make a call stating my location, situation etc. If no reply comes, try again in 5 minutes. If nothing heard then, shut down to save the battery, and try again at the top of the next hour.
This way, even if a scanner listener monitoring channel 1 FRS (default on FRS radio powerup) with an FRS radio could not reach the person needing help, they could at least *hear* the call, and possibly enlist the help of others.
What I'm thinking of is total brain-dead simplicity. Those with the knowledge to operate radios will obviously do so. But for mom and pop who remembered to just turn on the FRS unit, and make a call at the top of the hour, might be heard by a scanner listener with a good setup.
Is this just a pipe-dream, among all the other various schemes proposed over the years? Is it just an unusable bedlam of activity during these kinds of events?
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