“NEW HAM TRAINING”
Part Three
THE MEDIA AND YOU
There may be times when the media will show up at your post for a story. You are not assigned as a public relations person; so do NOT engage in a long-winded conversation about the event. You should refer any questions to the person in charge of the site. In the case of ashelter, this will be the Shelter Manager. They have been trained in handling the press/media. Sometimes the media might pressure youso they can develop a human interest story. You should ONLY report that you are there to supply radio communications on behalf of whatever organization you are currently serving. That is all. Giving too much information can lead to problems as things you might state often get distorted in theirreporting. You do not need this responsibility. At your communications EOC there is usually a PIO (Public Information Officer) who is responsible for any media interaction.
THE PROPER WAY TO USE A MICROPHONE
When using your microphone to transmit, hold it near mouth level, but DO NOT place it directly in front of your mouth. Try not to eat the mic. Keep it at an angle and talk slowly and clearly. Do not shout into the microphone but also do not whisper. Talk with the same voice level as if you were having a conversation in your living room. If the mic is directly in front of your mouth you’ll also be transmitting noise each time you take a breath and it will also cause your voice to sound muffled. Your heavy breathing will also be transmitted. If the communications is over a repeater you might also cause over deviation in which case the repeater will not transmit complete sentences and others will hear your communications as being choppy. By becoming involved in local club nets you will develop the proper mic etiquette for clear communications. This is not just a beginner’s mistake, there are experienced operators, even training operators who haven’t mastered how toproperly use a microphone.
Using ITU Phonetics
These are the WORLD-WIDE ITU Phonetics to use when you have to spell something out. A - Alfa
B - Bravo
C - Charlie
D - Delta
E - Echo
F - Foxtrot
G - Golf
H - Hotel
I - India
J - Juliet
K - Kilo
L - Lima
M - Mike
N - November
O - Oscar
P - Papa
Q - Quebec
R - Romeo
S - Sierra
T - Tango
U - Uniform
V - Victor
W - Whiskey
X - X-ray
Y - Yankee
Z - Zulu
DEALING WITH INTERFERENCE
There are all kinds of people in this world. Most are nice. Some are not. It’s the same way with amateur radio operators. There may be times when the jerks come out and attempt to interfere with communications during an emergency. Do not let them. These sick individuals take great pride in upsetting any ongoing communications. The best way to handle them is to just ignore them. Pretend youdo not even hear them. NEVER say “Can you repeat that again, someone keeps breaking in.”That’s just what they want you to do. They want to generate a response. Just work through it and usually they will get tired and stop.
IF they don’t, the next step is to shift to another repeater or frequency without mentioning that such a shift is taking place. (This is one reason why alternate frequencies are assigned before you turn out.) When the move to an alternate frequency is complete, at least two communicators should remain on the original repeater and talk. This will make the jerk transmitting the interference think that the emergency net is still there. Hopefully the net control station can communicate the problem to a ham radio operator or two who will be able to track down the offending idiot and inform local law enforcement personnel who might pay him a visit. Local police are very sympathetic to this problem and usually a visit from them will make the offender stop. I have even seen police arrest an individual for interfering with an ongoing emergency. The net control operator will also make a note of whom it is and report the incident to the local OOC (Official Observer Coordinator) for action by the FCC.
Just a reminder on USING TACTICAL CALLS
During both public service events and emergency events the net control operator may request that you use Tactical Calls to identify. These are usually either a location or vehicle you might be in. Tactical calls make the net control operations easier to fathom during a hectic operation. If this is the case, do so. An example would be: “Net Control, this is Shelter 3”. But remember that this does NOT absolve you from following FCC rules that state you MUST give your call-sign when IDing at the end of a series of transmissions and every ten minutes. Since most emergency communications between two stations will be under ten minutes this can be simply done on the last transmission by stating your call-sign.
TACTICAL or LOGISTICAL NETS
Sometimes there may be several nets in operation and on separate repeaters or simplex frequencies during an event. A tactical or logistical net could be one of them. This is a net that is used to converse with supply vehicles or depots, special communications between two agencies served by our communications group or any type of intercommunications beyond shelter or simple duty posts. Bydividing the communications responsibilities between a standard operational net that supplies shelter reports, etc. and a tactical net, theevent will operate with greater efficiency. A tactical net is only used when there are enough communicators available to divide duties andthe situation warrants it.Just remember that others will also be listening to your tactical net so be as professional as possible and ID with your call-sign.
INTERACTION AT A DUTY SITE
When you are working at a site that has evacuees, such as in a shelter, the people being housed there will be under stress. They may not even know if they will have a house to come home to. This stress can lead to them saying or doing unusual things at your site. It is NOT your duty to act as a social worker. Maintain a professional attitude with them. If they ask, tell them about amateur radio. By actingcalm, you will calm them. Do not take anything they say to heart. There have been cases where people have just drifted in, being homeless, and have used the shelter and its facilities. This is OK because the point of the shelter is to assist everyone. In some rare cases people may act as if they are not fully rational. If you see something like this, report it to the shelter manager.
DO NOT engage in talk or actions that could be misunderstood or misinterpreted. You are NOT there to make friends or cultivate a romance. You are there ONLY to supply communications support. Do not dispense any medications, even aspirin, from your go-bag. It could get you in a world of legal trouble. If a registered nurse is on duty at the site, you can give her your extra aspirin to hand out. DO NOT document the emergency event by taking pictures. It is both illegal and immoral.