Señor Sombra wrote:

You won't laugh when the fire comes roaring down the hill and totally
destroys your home, all your belongings, your pets, and possibly you. Want
to see what it looked like --- URL:
http://www.karlgrobl.com/Photojournalism/Fire/page1.htm

http://www.scrippsranch.org/special/fire_gallery.asp

In California more than 743,000 acres burned by Monday 11/03/03, these
hellish fires caused 24 deaths & destroyed more than 3,570 homes. Read that
again --- 3,570 homes and 24 deaths.

I had friends die in that fire.

Hundreds were evacuated as the smoke was so bad breathing was difficult all
over the county.

The hospitals were loaded with COPD patients.
The smoke also carries metallic particles-- many suffered long after the
fires.

The football stadium and red cross shelters was filled with fire refugees.
Amateurs brought food and water to those areas.

Livestock was roasted in their tracks some were rescued by Amateurs.

One couple took the wrong turn and died. Amateur Radio could have told them
the right escape route.
Their cellphones were out, the telephone lines were toasted.

Amateurs were a valuable asset heralded by civil authorities and the press.

RACES and ARES was out in full force, a Repeater information net served
hundreds who needed information on road closures,
evacuations, shelters, health and welfare and much more.

We are proud to have served.
Hope you are as well prepared as you are stupid.


Any number of other radio services could have "told them the right
escape route". Back when I was a little kid, in the 1970s, every car
carried an emergency CB radio. This was for communicating to others in
the event of an emergency of any kind, or to be used like cell phones
and FRS walkie talkies are used now. They worked pretty well, but by the
mid 80s Emergency CB was dead, primarily because lack of interest in CB
after 1980 had lured all the weirdos to the medium, and the bands had
become useless. If you want to make the case for amateur radio
disseminating info to the public in an emergency, support the SW hobby
broadcasting movement. Radios could easily be made that cover any "hobby
broadcasting bands". Licensed hobbyists would be able to run emergency
info stations at a time like you recount, and people could contact them
through any way possible, including through traditional amateur radio,
to give them emergency info to broadcast. In everyday life, the hobby
broadcasters would be an important info source, sort of like an on air
blog. This would break the corporate conglomerate grip on the media.
What good is amateur radio if the only thing you're allowed to discuss
is CQ's and "my radio is better than yours"?


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