Communications

Purpose 

Provide the support communication needs of the EMA and the communities within the county. This group is called upon in the event of a local or countywide communication failure or when additional trained communicators are needed. 

Situations 

Communication is facilitated via Starcom21, public service VHF and UHF frequencies as well as Amateur (HAM) radio. This group has the ability to: 

• Set-up and staff a temporary communications network (voice, text, image, and data) in the event of localized outages 

• Support community events such as parades, fairs, etc. by providing trained operators to facilitate communication 

Specialized Skills / Training / Certification / Licensing Requirement 

To operate on the Amateur Radio frequencies, an FCC license is granted the operator after passing an exam demonstrating knowledge and understanding of key concepts. 

Operating on the Starcom21 network requires training provided by EMA in the use of both portable (hand held) and mobile (vehicle-based) radios.