Ron, Thanks For The Forward!  Should Make All_ Of Us _Think About Who
and What We Are, And Why We're Amateur Radio Operaters!
Reference possible consequences of an E M P, A well researched,
knowledgeable, and "compelling read is,

One second after DB 69145
Forstchen, William R. Reading time: 12 hours, 31 minutes.
Read by Ray Foushee.

Science Fiction

When nuclear bombs detonate high in the atmosphere above the United
States, electromagnetic pulses destroy technology and electricity,
forcing Americans into ruthless survival mode. Former colonel John
Matherson fights to keep his family alive in the small town of Black
Mountain, North Carolina. Some violence and some strong language.
2009.




On 4/19/13, Gary Tillinghast <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Thanks Ron,
> When systems like this become exposed it highlights just how Murphy can
> succeed.  It makes officials relize just how a backup link is necesary.  To
>
> rely on cabling and phone lines to make a reliable link.  I have often
> wonder if we as the US get hit with a EMP, just how efective would the
> military be?  Are all electronics safe?  Do they store all aircraft under a
>
> Fairday cage or blanket?  We will have to wait and see.  Gary KB2YAA
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Ronald E. Milliman" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Friday, April 19, 2013 12:38 PM
> Subject: Is there still a need for ham radio operators??
>
>
> Is there still a need for ham radio operators during emergencies, during
> the most serious weather situations? Read this, and I think the answer will
> be abundantly clear.
>
> Yesterday, April 18, we had a forecasted severe weather alert here in the
> mid-west, expected to hit several states including Illinois, Missouri,
> Kentucky, Indiana, among others. Fortunately, the storm wasn't nearly as
> bad as originally predicted, but it is a good thing because there was a
> massive failure in our various emergency communications systems. Here is an
> email just received by one of our local emergency communications centers
> sent out this morning:
>
>
>  Many things went wrong on Thursday and they could have cost a lot of
> lives.  We should be thankful this morning that the severe weather event
> underperformed.
>
>  What went wrong on Thursday
>
>  1.  The bulk of the regions NOAA Weather Radio's failed.  An extremely
> rare event.  This was due to a communication problem with a phone line.
>  2.  Some weather radars went down or could not deliver data in a timely
> fashion
>  3.  Land lines were down at the National Weather Service because of the
> communication line failure.
>  4.  At least one major college network server that pushes severe weather
> information out to the public went down
>  5.  The National Weather Service chat program failed for many people -
> local emergency managers, media, and the NWS use this chat service to relay
> information to each other during severe weather events.
>  6.  WeatherCall wasn't working for some - this is a service that calls you
> when a warning is issued for your location.  The phones would ring and say
> it was WeatherCall but there would be no further voice message.
>  7.  Some people said their text alert systems also did not work for them
>  8.  Some local media computers crashed - causing delays for them in
> retrieving information.
>  9.  There were times people could not get onto the National Weather
> Service web-sites leading up to the event.  Slow servers or timing out
> issues.
>  9.  And finally, but not least - the forecast itself ended up being a near
> total failure (we got the heavy rain part of the forecast right).
>
> Personally I have not seen so many technology failures since the 2009 ice
> storm.  That was the last time the weather radios went down (because of
> catastrophic power failure).
>
>
> What this statement from the emergency weather center didn't say is that
> emergency ham communications during the severe ice storm in 2009 and then,
> again, yesterday, was the primary source of solid, reliable communications.
>
> 73,
> Ron, K8HSY
>
> Dr. Ronald E. Milliman, retired Professor Western Kentucky University
> Ph: 270-782-9325
> Email: [log in to unmask]
>
> Chair, American Council of the Blind Public Relations Committee
>
> Chair, American Council of the Blind's Monthly Monetary Support Program
> (MMS) Committee
>
> President: South Central Kentucky Council of the Blind (SCKCB)
>