>
> Japan Asks Radio Amateurs to Keep Frequencies Clear As Country Goes into 
> Recovery Mode after Devastating Earthquake
> TAGS: amateur, amateur radio, ARES® members, communications, county 
> emergency, earthquake, emergency, emergency communications, ham radio 
> operators, hams, IARU Region, Japan Amateur Radio League, radio, radio 
> amateur, santa cruz county, waves
> 03/14/2011
> After the 8.9 earthquake that struck near Sendai, Japan at 2:46 JST (0546 
> UTC) on Friday, March 11, the island nation is trying to recover. Soon 
> after the earthquake -- which the US Geological Survey (USGS) is calling 
> the largest to hit the island nation in 140 years -- Japan has been rocked 
> by tsunamis and power outages caused by trouble at a nuclear power 
> station. Reports from Japan tell of phone and Internet service still up in 
> most parts of the country. Even so, the Japan Amateur Radio League 
> (JARL) -- that country’s IARU Member-Society -- has asked that 7.030 MHz 
> be kept clear for emergency use. Other reports are asking that these 
> additional frequencies be kept clear: 3.525, 7.030, 14.100, 21.200 and 
> 28.200 MHz.
>
>
>
> IARU Region 3 Secretary Ken Yamamoto, JA1CJP, said that at the request of 
> Central Emergency Communication Committee, JARL is operating JA1RL -- its 
> HQ station in Tokyo -- and regional HQ stations. He said that JA1RL is 
> using 7 MHz SSB, 144 MHz SSB/FM and 430 MHz SSB/FM: “Many other radio 
> amateurs are thanked for providing information and exchanging support to 
> the rescue and disaster relief operations. Those who can operate in the 
> affected areas are providing a lifeline for rescue teams and those at 
> local shelters. Some stations are operating with car batteries and others 
> with engine generators.”
>
>
>
> Yamamoto said that Toru Tanaka, JR3QHQ -- the JARL Branch Manager in 
> Osaka -- is monitoring 7.043 MHz, gathering incident information on the 
> radio and forwarding this information via the Internet.
> On its website, JARL advised radio amateurs in Japan that they may be 
> called upon to be offered or used as a means of contacting emergency 
> response headquarters and a nearby shelter. JARL also advised that 
> depending on the operational status of the shelter and the emergency 
> response headquarters, there might not be any electricity. JARL said that 
> radio amateurs should volunteer to assist when and where needed “in good 
> faith.”
>
>
>
> The Hindu Business Line, a newspaper in India, reported that hams in India 
> are contacting hams in Japan to get information concerning their loved 
> ones. When a father in India could not get in touch with his daughter in 
> Japan after the quake, he turned to a friend who was a radio amateur. In 
> turn, the Indian amateur posted a message on an e-mail reflector where 
> another ham relayed the message to a radio amateur in Japan. Through this 
> method, the father learned that his daughter was safe.
>
>
>
> In earthquake- and tsunami-hit Japan, ham radio operators and social 
> networking sites have helped link families to loved ones in Japan. But 
> according to the newspaper, connecting to Japanese ham radio operators is 
> not easy. Sometimes messages are relayed from India to Thailand-based 
> operators who, in turn, relay the messages to Japan. “Since most Indian 
> operators do not know Japanese, communication is difficult and the 
> airwaves are scanned for English-speaking Japanese operators,” the 
> newspaper reported. “Nevertheless, Japanese ham radio operators are using 
> their radio network and the Internet to relay messages.”
>
>
>
> Japan has 1.3 million hams and according to Yamamoto, is not in need of 
> external emergency communication help, although this has been kindly 
> offered. “Basically the efforts being made are purely voluntary,” he said. 
> “No organized emergency communications have been arranged.”
>
>
>
> Yamamoto said that along with the after-effects of the earthquake and 
> tsunami, “another problem is the nuclear power plant where the water 
> supply system failure caused overheating of the nuclear fuel bar. That 
> caused some radioactive gas release from the plant and people have been 
> evacuated from the surrounding area.”
> Yamamoto said that as of 10 AM (JST) on Monday, March 14, police in Japan 
> have stated that the death toll has risen to 1627, with 1720 people still 
> missing. “It is only the official count and the number is still expected 
> to increase,” he said. “Thousands of bodies are reported to have been 
> found on the coast of the tsunami-suffered area.” IARU Region 3 Disaster 
> Communications Committee Chairman Jim Linton, VK3PC, said that a source in 
> the Miyagi prefecture reported that the death toll will be in the order of 
> tens of thousands in that prefecture alone.
> The earthquake also damaged electric power generation plants fuelled by 
> oil or natural gas, resulting in a shortage of electricity. Linton said 
> that Tokyo Electric Power Company plans to stop supplying power to certain 
> parts of its service area on rotation basis to cut power consumption. This 
> shortage of power may also stop or restrict the operation of the train 
> systems around Tokyo.
>
>
>
> Amateur Radio Response in the US
>
>
>
> Tsunami waves reached Santa Cruz, California -- about 100 miles south of 
> San Francisco -- around 8 AM (PST) on March 11. Early that morning, the 
> Santa Cruz County ARES® Team activated the Santa Cruz County Tsunami 
> Resource Net in advance of the anticipated 5-7 foot wave.
>
>
>
> According to Santa Cruz County ARES® Public Information Officer Bill 
> Conklin, AF6OH, more than 30 local ARES® members staffed various served 
> agencies, including the Santa Cruz County Emergency Operations Center, the 
> American Red Cross, Salvation Army Canteen Truck One, the Santa Cruz 
> County Harbor Coast Guard Auxiliary and a number of local fire 
> departments. In addition to the served agencies, a number of hams provided 
> remote observation of the coast line and communications capabilities at 
> the evacuation centers.
> The tsunami waves impacted the coast and did an estimated $15 million of 
> damage to the Santa Cruz Harbor. More than 100 boats -- including fishing 
> vessels, pleasure boats and yachts -- were either damaged or sunk as a 
> result of the waves.
>
>
>
> Conklin told the ARRL that Santa Cruz was not alone in receiving 
> significant damage as a result of the powerful waves. “Crescent City, 
> located approximately 500 miles north of Santa Cruz, also received heavy 
> damage, causing Governor Brown to declare these areas disaster zones. One 
> person died as a result of being swept out to sea with the high waves.”
>
>
>
> In Northern Nevada, hams spent the weekend preparing to handle health and 
> welfare messages in and out of Japan. In a joint exercise, Storey County 
> and Washoe County ARES® members spent two days establishing communications 
> protocol on HF, VHF and on Internet-based voice and data communications 
> systems. According to ARRL Storey County Emergency Coordinator Tom 
> Taormina, K5RC, this was the first time that many of the ARES® members 
> used HF communications to operate in a joint exercise with neighboring 
> counties and foreign countries.
>
>
>
> Taormina said that more than a dozen Japanese hams were contacted, all of 
> whom were outside the earthquake area. “We are now on standby, awaiting 
> permission of the Japanese government to begin formal third party 
> communications relays,” he said.
>
>
>
>
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