Ridgefield, Connecticut, USA: Hams help train emergency responders

Tom Kimball, left, of Ridgefield demonstrates ham radio equipment installed at the Ridgefield Emergency Operations Center to Oscar Fuller, middle, who coordinated the video project and Jim Schultz of Schultz Communications, which is producing the video. [Photo: The Ridgefield Press]

The Ridgefield Press, Connecticut, USA reports that members of Ridgefield’s volunteer disaster communications team — all specially trained, FCC-licensed, amateur radio operators — have been assisting in the development of a communications training video for use by fire, police and emergency medical first responders.

Oscar Fuller of Danbury is coordinating the project. He is a member of Ridgefield’s communication team, called R-COMM,  and Connecticut Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES).

Video production is funded through a federal/state grant managed by the Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security’s Region 5 communications group. Region 5 includes all of Litchfield county and the northern Fairfield county communities — 43 towns in total.

The video will demonstrate the capabilities of amateur radio equipment and disaster-trained operators. Ridgefield’s Emergency Operations Center  or EOC  and many centers and hospitals throughout Region 5 are equipped with amateur radio equipment that provides backup communications when normal communication channels are out of service.

The Amateur Radio Emergency Service motto is: “When all else fails — Amateur Radio.”

More at  The Ridgefield Press

(Source : The Ridgefield Press,  Connecticut, USA via Southgate Amatuer Radio News)