| Amateur radio (also called ham radio) is a hobby | | | | rescue groups as well as passing health and welfare |
| enjoyed by about 3 million people throughout the | | | | traffic to people trying the get in touch with relatives |
| world and over 600,000 in the USA alone. It is about | | | | in the stricken area. They carry a message out to |
| communications and the multiple ways of | | | | someone that says we are ok and we are alive and |
| communicating through radio waves. | | | | that is always great. |
| What most people do not know about this hobby | | | | The National Weather Service might have great |
| and the people that are operators is that they are | | | | radars, but a radar can't see the storms like human |
| one of the most used groups as means of | | | | eyes can. Just ask someone that works for the |
| emergency communication, when other conventional | | | | weather service about the role of radio operators |
| means of communications fail, in a disaster situation | | | | and you will get one answer- they are the "eyes" of |
| for example. | | | | the National Weather Service. They are on duty any |
| Local communications is one of the first things to go | | | | time that there are storms in the area. Any time of |
| away in case of a disaster such as hurricanes or | | | | day and night these people are watching storms and |
| tornadoes. Phones and electricity go down and the | | | | reporting what they see. |
| only thing left is amateur radio operators that can | | | | Their accurate reports can be used immediately by |
| operate from a battery and a piece of wire for an | | | | the weather service and further by the local radio |
| antenna. | | | | and TV stations which broadcast the reported data |
| These operators have networks set up all over the | | | | to the public. |
| world that can be immediately activated and used to | | | | Amateur radio operators are saving thousands of |
| coordinate disaster relief activities. Recent examples | | | | lives each year, yet this gets almost no recognition. |
| include the 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center, | | | | And the kicker is that their service is at no cost to |
| when amateurs worked weeks side by side with | | | | the public. As mentioned before, amateur radio is a |
| rescue crews supplying communications. | | | | personal hobby; this means the operators buy all their |
| Amateur operators were also involved this last year | | | | own radio equipment. |
| in all the hurricanes that we had all over the world. | | | | And they use it for public safety. Whenever needed |
| They have been watching and reporting the advance | | | | to warn the public of danger. |
| of the storms, setting up nets to pass traffic for | | | | Are they heroes? Think about it. |