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Even though hurricanes typically do not significantly impact our area, there are times when they do and it may be worthwhile to keep aware of hurricane developments.
Amateur radio is one way to keep aware with the Hurricane Watch Net on 14.325 MHz. There is also a Hurricane Watch Net web site that has quite a bit of information available. Along with keeping informed, be ready with fully charged hand-helds, a full tank of fuel for your vehicle, if you’re lucky to be high enough where flooding risk is minimal consider the possibility that you may be out of electric service for a while.
There is also more information to avail yourself at the National Weather Service/NOAA websites to be able to keep updated with the latest conditions and forecasts for hurricanes.
The following sites will help you stay informed:
http://www.weather.gov/
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/
http://water.weather.gov/ahps/
Just remember “Turn round Don’t Drown“!
 The Quad-County Amateur Radio Club is a WRN Ambassador “Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ and the Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ logo are trademarks of the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, used with permission.”
From ARRL:
[UPDATED 2015-09-30 @ 1940 UTC] The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has made it official: It’s Hurricane Joaquin, a Category 1 storm. But the NHC said that Joaquin is gaining strength and “could become a major hurricane during the next couple of days.” The Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) activated at 1500 UTC today (September 30) on 14.325 MHz (after nightfall, the net will convene on 7.268 MHz) to gather observer reports. WX4NHC at the NHC is not active at this time. Currently packing maximum sustained winds of 85 MPH, Hurricane Joaquin was about 190 miles east-northeast of the central Bahamas as of 1800 UTC. A hurricane warning is in effect for the central Bahamas, including Cat Island, the Exumas, Long Island, Rum Cay, and San Salvador.
“Due to the close proximity to land, whether or not this storm makes landfall in the Bahamas, the Hurricane Watch Net will be active until the storm is no longer a threat in this region,” said HWN Manager Bobby Graves, KB5HAV. “Everyone along the US East Coast should keep a close eye on this system. The current forecast brings Joaquin near the New England area by late Sunday or early Monday.”
During HWN activation, the net control station will request measured/observed ground-truth data from stations in the affected area. The HWN also remains available to provide back-up communication to official agencies, such as emergency operations centers and Red Cross officials in the affected area. The net also will gather and report to FEMA officials in the NHC any information on significant damage. Stations should not check into the net unless specifically requested to do so.
The NHC reported at 1800 UTC that Joaquin was moving toward the southwest at nearly 6 MPH. “A general motion toward the west-southwest or southwest is expected to continue through tonight,” the NHC said. “A turn toward the northwest and a decrease in forward speed are forecast on Thursday or Thursday night.The center of Joaquin is expected to move near or over portions of the central Bahamas tonight and Thursday.”
According to the NHC, Hurricane conditions are expected to reach portions of the Central Bahamas by Thursday morning. “Winds are expected to reach tropical storm strength in the warning area tonight, making outside preparations difficult or dangerous. Preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion,” the NHC said.
Dangerous storm surges are possible, and Joaquin is expected to produce 5 to 10 inches of rain, with isolated maximum amounts of 15 inches possible over San Salvador and Rum Cay through Friday morning.
The NHC said swells generated by Joaquin will affect portions of the Bahamas over the next few days and will start affecting portions of Florida’s eastern coast and the US southeast coast by Friday. “These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions,” the NHC predicted.
“We’re monitoring the situation and the forecasts regularly. Like most, we’re waiting to see which way the storm will go,” ARRL Emergency Preparedness Manager Mike Corey, KI1U, told the ARRL Field Organization leadership in the areas that could be affected by Joaquin. “ARRL Headquarters will be in touch with our National VOAD partners, FEMA, and NHC as things develop.”
Visit the HWNwebsite for the latest information on this storm and HWN activation plans.
With the current flood watches being issued for the surrounding counties, play it safe for yourself and emergency responders.
When you drive into floodwaters, you’re not only putting your own life at risk, but also the lives of those who will be called in to rescue you. It’s far better to be late to work or to an appointment and remain safe, than to take a risk and possibly lose your life. Turn Around Don’t Drown! weather.gov/flood
The Quad-County Amateur Radio Club is a WRN Ambassador “Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ and the Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ logo are trademarks of the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, used with permission.”
| Our deepest condolences to Art Kunst W3WM and his family on their loss. Art is a Charter Member of the Quad-County Amateur Radio Club, and until illness forced them to leave the area, both were members of the club.
 Sylbia Shirley Kunst, 90, South Fayette, formerly of DuBois for more than 60 years, died peacefully Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2015.
Beloved wife of Arthur F. Kunst W3WM for 67 ½ years; loving mother of Sylbia (Frank) Katrin of South Fayette, Sharon (Tris) Coffin of McDonald, Arthur (Cindy) of Carlisle, and Donald (Terry) of Lykens; grandmother of William and Ryan Trude, Kaeli, Abby and Jackie Coffin, Michael, Sean and Steven Kunst and Garrison Kunst; also many nieces and nephews.
She was an active member of the Christ Lutheran Church, DuBois, for many years.
Funeral arrangements by BEINHAUERS. 724-941-3211. Friends welcome at 2828 Washington Road, McMurray, 15317, 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. Monday, Sept. 28, 2015. Services will be held on 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2015, at the funeral home. Interment in the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies. Please add or view tributes at www.beinhauer.com |
| We note with sadness the passing of Harold K. Miller WA3NRC, 92, of Clearfield on September 24, 2015. Harold was a founding member of the Quad-County Amateur Radio Club and returned to the Clearfield Area in 1972 after retiring as a research scientist for the National Institute of Health in Washington, DC. He was an avid Morse Code operator, and enjoyed designing and using his radio equipment. He was well known for his groundbreaking work with receiving systems.
Arrangements are being made through the Chidboy Funeral Home, and more information will be reported as it becomes available. |
Even with the bright colors and cool temperatures, Fall can also hold some rather hazardous weather too. Be prepared for the hazards that can occur during this time of year as many of us are winding down from a hectic summer.
 Click for detailed information on what various Fall weather hazards can occur and how you can prepare for a safe Fall.
The Quad-County Amateur Radio Club is a WRN Ambassador “Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ and the Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ logo are trademarks of the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, used with permission.”
The current American Radio Relay League Special Service Club renewal certificate was received at the August meeting of the QCARC. Members can be proud of the Club’s continuing involvement in Public Service, Training, VE Exams, Mentoring, etc. that enable the Club to continue to maintain the Special Service Club designation.
What is Special Service Club?
To quote the ARRL –
“A club that exists to go above and beyond for their communities and for Amateur Radio is what defines a Special Service Club (SSC). They are the leaders in their Amateur Radio communities who provide active training classes, publicity programs and actively pursue technical projects and operating activities.”
 FCC announces that ULS and other databases will be taken offline for scheduled maintenance for a five-day period beginning Wednesday, September 2 and continuing through the Labor Day weekend. The Commission said that during the ULS outage, it will not be possible to file any Amateur Radio applications.
During the outage, no license applications can be filed, no license modifications will be accepted, and no new licenses will be granted. It is expected that the vanity callsign licensing & renewal fee will be eliminated as part of this action. A search revealed that only two Group A (1×2 and 2×1) callsigns become available during that time period, but since applications may be made early on 9/2 for K4JE, and late on 9/8 for KE9B, careful applicants can successfully apply for those callsigns.
If your license is set to expire during this period, it is recommended that you submit your renewal application now to avoid a lapse in your license.
ZCZC AG25
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 25 ARLB025
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT August 25, 2015
To all radio amateursSB QST ARL ARLB025
ARLB025 FCC Universal Licensing System, Other Applications to be
Down for Maintenance
FCC website maintenance in early September will make the Universal
Licensing System (ULS), the Electronic Comment Filing System (ECFS),
the Electronic Document Management System (EDOCS) and other public
applications unavailable for more than 5 days. The Commission said
the outage will begin at 2200 UTC on Wednesday, September 2, and
continue through the Labor Day weekend. The maintenance work should
be completed by 1200 UTC on Tuesday, September 8. During the ULS
outage, it will not be possible to file any Amateur Radio
applications.
"Most Commission resources normally accessible through the
Commission's website, including access to all electronic filing
systems and electronic dockets, will be inaccessible for the same
period, with the exception of the Network Outage Reporting System
(NORS), the Consumer Help Center (CHC), and the Disaster Information
Reporting System (DIRS), which will remain available," an FCC Public
Notice said on August 20. "The Commission's website will remain
available, but with reduced content and limited search
capabilities." According to the Public Notice, the FCC will follow
its normal schedule of operation during the maintenance period, but
voicemail will be offline, and most Commission staffers will not
have access to e-mail. Static content webpages on the fcc.gov
domain, such as the FCC consumer guides, should remain available
during the outage.
The FCC will extend filing deadlines for all regulatory and
enforcement filings that fall during the maintenance period. Filings
due on September 2, 3, 4, or 8 now will be due on Wednesday,
September 9. "Except for the due dates specified herein, we are not
automatically extending the deadlines for any other comment or
filing periods that will be running during this time period, but
requests for extension of time will be considered consistent with
the Commission's normal practice," the FCC Public Notice said. "To
the extent the due dates for filings to which reply or responsive
pleadings are allowed are affected by this Public Notice, the due
dates for reply or responsive pleadings shall be extended by the
same number of days."
In a blog, "Modernizing the FCC's IT," FCC CIO David Bray said that
with the world and the technology we use are changing rapidly, "the
information technology used by the Federal Communications Commission
must change as well." Bray said the FCC has "made significant
progress to upgrade and modernize our infrastructure, and we
continue to work on modernizing the FCC's legacy IT systems with the
resources we have available."
"We understand that this temporary downtime before and during the
Labor Day Weekend may be inconvenient for some FCC stakeholders,"
Bray added.
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We have been invited to the Super 322 Drive-In Car Show again this year to set up a station. Set up time 9:00 AM, Sunday August 16. Weather forecast looks good bring your sunscreen and a lot of water to keep hydrated. I understand there are food vendors on site too.
Location is east of Clearfield on the North side of Route 322, on your left approximately 1 mile east of the traffic light in front of Gio’s (intersection Rte 322 & Rte. 970). West bound – on your right approximately 1.7 miles west of the Bigler traffic light at the Bigler Mini Mart (intersection Rte. 322 and Allport Cutoff road). Talk-in: 147.315, N3QC repeater.
Here is the car show web site for more information such as the car and truck categories.
http://www.super322drive-in.com/upcomingevents.htm
The tour is scheduled for August 9 beginning at 11:30 AM.
The address is 328 Innovation Blvd, Suite 330, State College, PA 16803. Upon arrival in Innovation Park, turn left and the building is the last one on the left hand side before the construction (look for the building with all the satellites on the roof). There is visitor parking right by the entrance, the office is on the 3rd floor. Since it is a weekend, the mail door may be locked, but just use the call box near the door to let them know you are there. Google maps plots the location very well and a GPS with current maps should get you there easily too.
Please email me, WA3UFN at comcast dot net, to advise that you will be attending as I need to give an approximate attendance to the National Weather Service just for planning purposes. This is open to members, family and friends. If you would like to car-pool also advise in the email, I’ll try to coordinate that aspect. We can try 146.49 simplex, as a talk around frequency while enroute or if you need assistance otherwise use the State College repeater, 146.76, access tone 146.2 Hz.
Any questions use my email as well.
The colony stations will operate from Tuesday June 30, 9:00 AM Eastern (1300 UTC) until Sunday night July 5, Midnight Eastern (0400 UTC July 6). Operations will be on CW, SSB, RTTY … Each year very attractive certificates are sent to those who submit a log, they are a nice addition for folks who collect and display them. It actually is a rather popular special event that started in 2009, with participation growing every year. This is an operating event that you can make as intense as you want and can spread your operating time out over days. One of the things that make it rather fun, at least to me, is finding a station just as they come on the air and you’re the first or one of the very first to make the contact! For all the longer it takes listen for a station tuning up, it may be one of the the colony stations that you can log without working through a pile-up.
For all the details check out the event web site: http://www.13colonies.info/
The National Weather Service has issued Hazardous Weather Outlooks and Flood Watches for heavy to record rainfall for most of PA beginning late Friday. With the forecast heavy rain, water ponding and areas that may be effected by flash flooding are a concern for safety. Please be cautious while setting up your Field Day event for areas that could be effected.
Also with thunderstorms forecast remember – “When Thunder Roars, Go Indoors”.
Keep a closed watch on your area’s current weather. A NOAA Weather Radio with the alert function set up would be a good idea. SkyWarn spotter activation may be needed.
The Quad-County Amateur Radio Club is a WRN Ambassador “Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ and the Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ logo are trademarks of the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, used with permission.”
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