About

ARES: The Amateur Radio Emergency Service.

ARES (pronounced air-eez) is sponsored by the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) which is a private non-profit and is the National Association of Amateur Radio.  ARES is the emergency communications branch of the ARRL and provides structure, training, basis and purpose.    More information about ARES, along with forms, books, and other training materials can be found at the ARES home page, http://www.arrl.org/ares

ARES clients are generally non-governmental organizations active in disasters, such as the American Red Cross and Salvation Army.  In Monmouth County we serve the NJ Region of the American Red Cross along with any other Volunteer Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD) that may pop up during a disaster and request our assistance.

RACES: The Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service.

RACES (pronounced race-eez) is not strictly an organization.  Rather it is a set of rules within the amateur radio regulations (FCC Part 97) that establish how amateur radio can be used during a national disaster (such as nuclear war).  During World Wars I and II, amateur radio was "shut down" as part of the War Powers Act.  But amateur radio operators still provided such a  valuable service during the war (usually as enlisted radio operators) that it was realized that even when civilian radio was shut down, the hams could provide a valuable service.  As such, the RACES rules were developed to allow a trained group of radio operators who were associated with a Civil Defense organization to stay on the air for the purpose of emergency communications.

Over the years, Civil Defense in and of itself went away.  It has now "morphed" into the Dept. of Homeland Security.  At the state, county, and local level, this is usually the Office of Emergency Management, and MCARS supports the Monmouth County Office of Emergency Management (OEM).  Basically, RACES has become "ARES for government."

Skywarn

Skywarn is a program created and sponsored by the National Weather Service (NWS).  In this area, the local office is in Mount Holly, NJ.  Skywarn provides "ground truth" observations back to the NWS Forecast Office.  Ground truth is important because the forecaster's view of the weather is through small weather stations and radar.  Weather stations are in a fixed position and radar only sees up into the atmosphere (and the further from the radar, the higher up it sees).  As a result, forecasters do not know what is happening everywhere.  Most of the time this is OK- the weather in Eatontown, NJ is probably the same as in Long Branch, NJ.  But during severe weather, that is not always the case.  Tornadoes, straight line winds, hail, flooding, and heavy snowfall can be different less than a mile away.  Having this information allows the forecasters to issue the proper Watches and Warnings to the public which has the potential to save lives.

To become a registered member of Skywarn, you need to attend a training class held by the NWS and run by a meteorologist.  We hold these in Monmouth County every two years.  However, you may attend a training seminar anywhere else, or online if offered (just let them know you live in Monmouth County, NJ and they will get you registered in Mount Holly).  The Mount Holly Skywarn website is: https://www.weather.gov/phi/skywarn