The following activation level definitions will allow for a unified structure response to emergency situations in Wilson County.
LEVEL 4 – STANDBY: This level of activation is to raise the awareness of WC AuxComm volunteers and to provide advance notice regarding a possible deployment. There is no requirement for a NET to be established at level 4. Volunteers should monitor their radios and check their level of preparedness.
LEVEL 3 -MINIMAL DEPLOYMENT: At this level of activation the WC AuxComm Coordinator shall assess the need for volunteers. The WC AuxComm Coordinator may contact a minimal number of WC AuxComm members to gather scheduling information. There is no requirement for a NET to be established at level 3. Equipment testing should be conducted and volunteers should monitor their radios.
LEVEL 2 -MODERATE DEPLOYMENT: At this level of activation at least one WC AuxComm member shall be deployed at the EOC. Call-up WC AuxComm volunteers to establish a work schedule. Also, there is a requirement for a NET to be established and strict net protocols should be observed. WC AuxComm volunteers should monitor their radios and be ready to react to calls for service at the EOC or elsewhere.
LEVEL 1 -MASSIVE DEPLOYMENT: At this level of activation W CAuxComm members schedules are updated to fulfill operator and net control requirements. All WC AuxComm resources shall be available to support EOC and other served agencies. If needed, AuxComm volunteers from other counties may be asked to support Wilson Co. AuxComm volunteers are asked to be ready for an assignment and listen to the assigned frequencies. However, ensure that your family is secure before volunteering for the emergency. The first member to activate, starts the NET and records call signs and availability of WCAuxComm members. The 444.900 repeater will be the primary source of information. If the repeater goes down, immediately go to 146.550 simplex. When you hear the 444.900 re-set and the repeater ID, go back to UHF duplex operation. Frequencies to monitor 444.900 Repeater 146.550 Simplex 146.520 National Simplex 146.880 Skywarn/State EOC 3.923 State EOC 7.232 State EOC 1.983 State EOC 154.980 Wilson County Fire Wilson EOC: 237-8300 #2249 (when activated).
If an amateur operator who is on-site and best able to assess the prevailing conditions becomes aware of a potential situation that may require a State AuxComm or Skywarn activation, they should immediately monitor the 444.900 or 146.880 repeaters. If you do not hear any traffic after a few minutes, transmit your callsign and ask if anyone has information about a emergency situation. If the State AuxComm or Skywarn Net is brought up on 146.880 in a standby mode, regular traffic is permissible. However, State AuxComm or Skywarn traffic has priority over normal traffic. When these Nets are in an active mode, regular traffic will be severely limited. Ragchew and other non-germain traffic should be moved to another repeater or to a simplex frequency to allow for the emergency and priority traffic to be passed rapidly. If contacted by a served agency, or other group, requesting WCAuxComm to cover an event or emergency communications backup, take down as much information as possible, then notify the Wilson County AuxComm Coordinator and the Emergency Manager of the request. This will make sure that all requests are routed as quickly as possible to the appropriate support group. Our frequencies may be monitored during an emergency by the public, served agencies and the news media. All WCAuxComm operations should be conducted as friendly, courteously and professionally as possible. Radios should be preloaded with repeaters frequencies for our area, as well as some of the wide area repeaters outside the area. Test your radio equipment monthly and try to activate these repeaters. Determine your station’s simplex range. Remember, radio range will be determined by terrain, antenna heights/gains and radio output power. Due to the number of locations and limited personal, WCAuxComm may not be able to provide support, in this case crossband repeating from the vehicle may be required. Some areas may be restricted unless you are authorized to enter. Make sure that you have photo identification, any issued county ID and a copy of your FCC license.