Amateur Radio Emergency Services AuxComm - ARES

The Forsyth County AuxComm - ARES Net meets every Thursday evening at 2030 hours (8:30 PM) local time.

The Net is conducted on the W4NC 145.470 + (T100) repeater and is used for Emcomm training, practice and training in emergency / disaster response and public service communications. All amateurs are invited and encouraged to participate in this net. Our backup repeaters are the K4GW 147.315 + (T100) repeater and the W4NC 146.640 + (T100). All repeaters cover the Forsyth County Area.

AuxComm - ARES INFORMATION AND TRAINING

For AuxComm - ARES training information, please click on the AuxComm - ARES Training button in red lettering to your left or
Click HERE for AuxComm - ARES Training Information

WHAT IS AuxComm - ARES ???

ARES is the function of the Amateur Radio Relay League Field Organization which coordinates ham radio response as communicators in disaster situation and public service events. Local ARES units are formed at the county level and are led by an appointed volunteer Emergency Coordinator (EC).

AUXCOMM is a DHS Emergency Support Function (ESF-2) that covers all supplemental communications support for emergency and disaster situations. As DHS and most states have done, the State of North Carolina has designated AuxComm as the RACES equivalent within the state and placed Amateur Radio primary within that designation. AuxComm includes ARES, CERT communications, REACT, etc. within ESF-2 Communications.

Within the State of North Carolina and Forsyth County NC, amateur radio has been tasked with managing supplemental communications operations (ESF-2) from the EOC and/or Incident Command Posts as requested. As such Forsyth County ARES has been re-designated Forsyth County AuxComm/ARES.

Additionally, Forsyth County AuxComm - ARES provide communications support for local cities and towns within the county as well as surrounding counties where no formal AuxComm or ARES organization is established. Through State-Wide Mutual Aid Agreements, Forsyth County AuxComm/ARES when requested by either the State of NC or Forsyth County Emergency Management could be deployed to surrounding counties during an emergency or disaster.

An Amateur Radio Station License is required for ARES membership. Amateur radio operators should register via Form 98 which will provide the EC with your contact information and band/mode capabilities. The form is available on the back of the FARC Newsletter which you may already have, or you can download the latest Club Newsletter and get Form 98 by clicking on that button to your upper left, or in person from the EC. There are no fees for membership and members do not have to be a member of the Forsyth Amateur Radio Club.

Forsyth County AuxComm - ARES Team members volunteer their time and equipment to perform communications and other support as needed during times of emergency/disaster or public service event within the county and surrounding jurisdictions. Most of our operations use VHF/UHF FM, so any class of licensee can participate.

The Forsyth County AuxComm - ARES Team is sponsored and supported by the Forsyth Amateur Radio Club which provides financial and equipment support for AuxComm/ARES operations.

Forsyth County AuxComm - ARES primary served partners are the Winston Salem / Forsyth County Emergency Management Agency and the American Red Cross. We provide supplemental communications under ESF-2 and MOU’s to these partners.

Our primary Public Service event is the annual two-day Bike MS Tour to Tanglewood event. During this charity event, we provide communications support throughout the route at rest stations as well as providing radio equipped Support & Gear vehicles (SAGS). This event gathers over 900 riders annually and covers 3 counties. In 2018 the event raised over $850,000 for MS research.

For more information or to join Forsyth County AuxComm - ARES check into the Thursday evening AuxComm - ARES Net or contact the Emergency Coordinator at the FARC meetings. A fill-in form to join AuxComm - ARES can be downloaded below:

Click HERE for Form 98 to Join AuxComm - ARES!

AuxComm - ARES DOCUMENTATION AND FORMS

Click on the AuxComm - ARES Documentation and Forms button to your left for documentation and forms or:

Click HERE for AuxComm Documentation and Forms

CONTACT INFORMATION FOR JOINING AuxComm - ARES OR REQUESTING ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

For additional information on AuxComm - ARES or how to join, contact Harlan at the info below:

NOTE: AuxComm - ARES members do not self-deploy.

SERVED PARTNERS