Page 1 3/1/92 RBINTRO INTRODUCTION, RACES BULLETINS-BY-TOPIC This material is derived from over 350 Emergency Management and Disaster Response Bulletins issued by the California Office of Emergency Services over the six year period prior to this compilation. Occasional supplemental data may be added. Supplemental data is noted as SB-(year). Special bulletins issued to California-only distribution may be included, in which instance their identity is like this: CA92-1 (California message #1 in l992.) The original bulletins were issued for a three-fold purpose: 1. to aid, assist and inform government agency officials charged with the role of emergency management and response for their communities. 2. to stimulate local community interest in, and ability to utilize, a valuable resource of communicators, particularly for emergency response. 3. to aid, assist, inform and train volunteer Amateur Radio operator responders as to what to expect and how to react in emergencies where their talents could be of value to their government and communities. In the mid-1980's the California Legislature determined that preparedness and emergency management response was not adequately considering the potential for failure of conventional communication needs, including established fire, law enforcement and other government radio systems. The Legislature specifically indicated that the vast resource of the FCC licensed Amateur Radio Operators should be integrated into governmental activities so that these volunteers could aid and assist their communities in time of need. Following that determination, the State,through the Governor's Office of Emergency Services in Sacramento, procured the services of an experienced emergency management coordinator skilled in the utilization of volunteers. That individual was Stanly E. Harter, KH6GBX, former Chief of Telecommunications for the State of Hawaii, Civil Defense Division. In his California position as Assistant Chief, Telecommunications Division, Harter began the issuance of the bulletins that are the source of this works. There exists in the FCC regulations the authority for a service called the RACES, Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service; and that program became the format on which to develop local, county and state utilization of an under realized resource. Much organizational work had to be accomplished and structures had to be created. At the time he began 4 of 58 counties had RACES units with mutual aid capability. By the time of this compilation the counties with RACES mutual aid capability had increased to 38. California is a complex state, with the highest and lowest points in the 48 continuous states. It is split by several mountain ranges, with climates from arid desert to snowcapped mountains. Its fertile inland valleys are of enormous importance to the nations bread basket. Its hot dry summers with tinder-dry forests and fog shrouded coasts offer an administrative nightmare. It faces an at-times violent Pacific Ocean along a general coastline of 840 miles, with a tidal shoreline of 3427 miles. It's water-canal systems range over a 770 mile territory from Oregon to Arizona and Mexico. Most of its counties are several times the size of many other states. Add the fact that it sits astride numerous active earthquake faults.Its complex populations are in a startling diversity of places. It's people are noted for their often different ways of doing things with conflicting ideas in such a sprawled-out and geographically diverse state. California does not dictate to counties what or how they should proceed, except possibly where State funds may be involved. Rather, it provides a role model, with written plans, for the local community response programs. It organized emergency response through its mutual aid program into six large geographic areas, or Regions. There, through the six Regional OES offices, it coordinates aid and provides guidance as requested, but does not force itself on any jurisdiction. Sometimes the role of the Amateur Radio operator in volunteer communications response may not be appreciated in local government. Local program administrators may not equate the trained communicator to volunteer fire fighters, sheriff's reserve deputies, or search and rescue volunteers. A concept of volunteer communicators can therefore be an alien idea. Even where there is an understanding of the use of them, it is possible that an administrator shelves the program due to an unsatisfactory experience with one or more Amateurs (who are fortunately not representative of the vast majority of these skilled people.) Additionally, some Amateurs do not understand that the role of State OES is to coordinate the activities for benefit of and on request of the counties or cities in each Region rather than manage an emergency or disaster from the top down. State OES is a center that coordinates activity through its Regions and collects information for the benefit of the Governor; hence a State Operations and Warning Center in Sacramento. The task of assisting local governments to partake of the skills of the vital resource of Amateur Radio operators was one of a long term effort. To facilitate the process informational bulletins were regularly issued each week from the State Office of Emergency Services in Sacramento. They were sent to each Region and local jurisdictions and Amateurs. At first they were distributed on Amateur radio nets, supplemented by mailings. Later they were then distributed via the nationwide digital network of the Amateur Radio fraternity (i.e., packet). However, the nature of their release prohibited assimilation into a cohesive work indexed by topic. Additionally, the constraints of the digital network are such that each bulletin is more likely to be successfully transmitted nationwide if limited to 18 lines of text. That, in turn, means a subject may be spread over more than one bulletin, which can be frustrating to the user. In view of that situation, it was decided to assemble the still-relative bulletins into a single works by category and topic. This compilation is the result. May you find it useful. And, if this work of compiling this valuable resource data on Emergency Communication should stimulate your own ideas and thoughts on the subject, please write. The Bulletins have these general categories: Management, Operations, Miscellaneous and Technical, each of which have various sub-categories in a variety of sub-topics. A fifth topic, TIM, for time related, has been deleted as of no current value. Each item is referenced to an original RACES BULLETIN or other material, like this: History of RACES, RB86-33 & 34 , means it references Bulletins 33 and 34 in l986. In 1988 the bulletin numbering sequence changed to 001, and has been sequentially numbered since, with the year dropped from the designator. Future RACES bulletins will be issued by number and date in the chronological format, with a reference to the general category so you can update your Bulletins-By-Topics Files In addition, chronological bulletins will be periodically converted to the Bulletins-by-Topic format. Time sensitive material (TIM) will dropped from the Bulletins-By-Topic revision. Bulletins-By-Topic, is available on request in several ways. 1. In ASCII for the IBM compatible computer on disc 3-1/2" DSDD or 5-1/2". 2 In Word for the MacIntosh on disc, 3-2/1" DSDD disc or DSHD. For a Disc copy send a self addressed stamped return disc mailer with either one 3 1-2" DSDD, or two 5 1-4" discs to the address below. Please specify the Bulletins-by-Topic and whether IBM or MAC. 3. A PRINTED version; two-column page, double sided on 8.5 x 11" paper, punched for 3 ring binder. [Add your own binder and separators for a superb reference works. Cost and availability to be announced. This version varies from the disc version, in that the following three topics under Management are combined: Overview of Management, Organization and Radio Officer. In contrast, on disc, due to their length, they were separated into smaller segments for ease of access.] 4. A RACES MANUAL, with the Bulletins-by-topic as the basis. Cost and availability to be announced. Bulletin topics are contributed to by people from throughout the US and Canada. Your interest, concern and assistance is appreciated. Input and questions are continually welcome. Address: California Office of Emergency Services, attn: RACES Coordinator, 2800 Meadowview Road, Sacramento, Calif. 95832.