Virginia ARES/RACES

Virginia Section | ARES/RACES of VA
HURRICANE IRENE

All ARES personnel should check in with their local emergency coordinator or district emergency coordinator in the EC's absence to let him/her know of your availability.

ARES personnel DO NOT SELF-ACTIVATE! Wait until your leaders or served agencies activate you. This does not prevent anyone from preparing in advance.

MONITOR your local VHF/UHF frequencies and the ODEN HF net on 3947/7240 kHz.

Ed Krom
WD4KHP
VA ARRL Section Emergency Coordinator

North Carolina ARES SEC; Re Hurricane Irene

This was e-mailed to me~

Message from;

Tom Brown N4TAB
NC RACES Officer
NC ARES SEC

ARES Update #3

Re Hurricane Irene - Not a good scenario, at all.

The track of Hurricane Irene has turned more toward the West and places significant portions of Eastern NC in a perilous situation.The trajectory, plus the forecast wind field profiles, plus the forecast storm surges portends some tough days ahead.

NC ARES/Auxcomm folks may be tasked to support our state in unprecedented ways. Attendant to the potential for communications infrastructure failures is the very real likelihood of mandatory evacuations from affected areas and that may include EM personnel as well as volunteers in our Auxcomm ranks. Once evacuated, you may not re-enter the area until Recovery is complete. That means that the folks most familiar with the affected areas may not be available to serve during the Incident and recovery. Worse is the absence of institutional knowledge, such as frequency plans in IC-205 and IC-217 formats that have been previously/recently requested. Teams sent into affected areas without that information will have to play Monte Carlo, seeking assets. It's not too late to get that accomplished - an informal email to your EB ASEC John Sprouse N4VJJ or CB ASEC Steve Misel K4WEB will be a big step in filling that need.

Timing Owing to the projected timeline for Hurricane impact upon NC, it is not likely that dangerous wind fields will have exited NC prior to sundown on Saturday. That will affect initial damage assessment and the subsequent Recovery phase of the Incident. If that process identifies significant infrastructure damage, it is likely that Strike Teams will be formed for insertion into the affected areas. Comms will be a critical part oft the Team mission and, if the State's COMMs are impaired, ARES/Auxcomm will fill that role.

Capabilities We have identified, contacted and effected initial coordination with entities that can provide record traffic communications via Winlink Transportable assets, as well as tactical communications. These will come from NC ARES, NC MARS, SC ARES, SC MARS and other groups. This is Auxcomm at it's very best.

COMMS in NC The Tar Heel Emergency Net (THEN) will be active during the Hurricane impingement period. We have real experience that, although listening to HF during a hurricane is tedious and tiring, it is essential.

This is it Folks, this is a BIG Incident. Recall/refresh your ICS concepts and be ready to plug-in. This is the reason that we, all of us, signed-up and agreed to help. Now is the time.

Please. If you don't understand or need help in putting a plan in place, contact your EC. DEC, ASEC, SD and/or me.......one single ICS trained and motivated individual can make a difference.

Final tonight. Immediately prior to the onset of Hurricane Irene's insult upon NC, the NC ARES/ NC MARS/ Auxcomm Team will communicate to all members, jointly and severally, cogent information and instructions.

Please maintain situational awareness and be cognizant of changing circumstances.

Of most importance, be safe and take care of your loved ones, first.

73,
Tom Brown N4TAB
NC RACES Officer
NC ARES SEC

ALERT: FBI Issues Hurricane Scam Warning

In light of Hurricane Irene, the public is reminded to beware of fraudulent e-mails and websites claiming to conduct charitable relief efforts.

Tips On Avoiding Fraudulent Charitable Contribution Schemes

Recently several natural disasters, including tornadoes, floods, and earthquakes, have devastated lives and property. In the wake of these events that have caused emotional distress and great monetary loss to numerous victims, individuals across the nation often feel a desire to help these victims, frequently through monetary donations.

These disasters prompt individuals with criminal intent to solicit contributions purportedly for a charitable organization or a good cause. Therefore, before making a donation of any kind, consumers should adhere to certain guidelines, to include the following:

• Do not respond to unsolicited (SPAM) e-mail.
• Be skeptical of individuals representing themselves as officials soliciting via e-mail for donations.
• Do not click on links contained within an unsolicited e-mail.
• Be cautious of e-mail claiming to contain pictures in attached files, as the files may contain viruses. Only open attachments from known senders.
• To ensure contributions are received and used for intended purposes, make contributions directly to known organizations rather than relying on others to make the donation on your behalf.
• Validate the legitimacy of the organization by directly accessing the recognized charity or aid organization's website rather than following an alleged link to the site.
• Attempt to verify the legitimacy of the non-profit status of the organization by using various Internet-based resources, which also may assist in confirming the actual existence of the organization.
• Do not provide personal or financial information to anyone who solicits contributions: providing such information may compromise your identity and make you vulnerable to identity theft.

To obtain more information on charitable contribution schemes and other types of online schemes, visit www.LooksTooGoodToBeTrue.com.

If you believe you have been a victim of a charity related scheme, contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud by telephone at (866) 720-5721, or by fax at (225) 334-4707, or by e-mail at disaster@leo.gov.1 You can also report suspicious e-mail solicitations or fraudulent websites to the Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.IC3.gov.

1 National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) was originally established by the Department of Justice to investigate, prosecute, and deter fraud in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Its mission has expanded to include suspected fraud from any natural or man-made disaster. More than 20 federal agencies, including the FBI, participate in the NCDF, allowing it to act as a centralized clearinghouse of information related to relief fraud.

Hurricane Irene News Links

Here are some Articles of interest in regards to Hurricane Irene~

IRENE 'WEAKENS A LITTLE'...

'Little change in strength expected' before NC landfall...

HURRICANE WARNING FROM NC TO NYC...

65 MILLION PEOPLE IN PATH...

VIDEO: 8 Swept Off Jetty By Wave...

NYC BRACES FOR UP TO 12" RAIN...

BREAKING: SUBWAYS, BUSES, TRAINS SHUT DOWN AT NOON SATURDAY...

Much of East already 'super-saturated'...

New moon could make flooding worse?

UPDATE: Irene Flight Cancellations Top 1,000...

Hurricane Irene Update (#3)

If Hurricane Irene proceeds as is currently forecast, then most people of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast US States will be exposed to the worse storm conditions of their lifetime. For residents of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast US States now is the time to prepare.
The National Hurricane Center is issuing warnings on category 2 Hurricane Irene. Tropical storm force winds are expected within the southern portion of the warning area along the United States east coast by late today. Hurricane force winds are expected to first reach the hurricane warning area tonight or Saturday morning, and then spread northward in the warning area through Saturday night. The latest five day precipitation forecast confirms the direction predicted in the last HPC forecast of the hurricane's path. The forecast moves a slightly greatest density of rain fall to the south. It shows the heaviest rainfall over eastern North Carolina, eastern Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, far east Pennsylvania, east southeast New York, Vermont, western Connecticut western Massachusetts, New Jersey, and northern New Hampshire with more than 14.8 to 8 inches forecast to fall along the greatest rainfall line. The nine panel Northern Hemisphere GFSx - NH - 500mb Hght/SLP plot and US loop is continues to show a major hurricane moving off the east coast of Florida up towards a North Carolina landfall then moving up the coast, but now diverges from HPC's forecast and shows the storm moving inland at the center of Long Island and then moving towards northern Maine. Currently, Irene has maximum winds of 110 MPH, hurricane force winds of that extend out 90 miles from the center, and tropical force winds of extend out to 290 miles. Irene is expected to produce rainfall accumulations of 6 to 10 inches, with isolated maximum amounts of 15 inches, from eastern North Carolina into southeastern virgin, eastern Maryland, Delaware, eastern Pennsylvania. New Jersey, southeastern New York, long island, western Connecticut, and western Massachusetts through Monday morning. These rains could cause widespread flooding and life-threatening flash floods. An extremely dangerous storm surge will raise water levels by as much as 6 to 11 feet above ground level in the hurricane warning area in North Carolina, including the Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds. Storm surge will raise water levels by as much as 4 to 8 feet above ground level over southern potions of the Chesapeake Bay, including tributaries, and the eastern shore of the Delmarva Peninsula. Storm surge will raise water levels by as much as 3 to 6 feet above ground level along the Jersey shore. Near the coast, the surge will be accompanied by large, destructive, and life-threatening waves.