The starting point is an amateur-radio station prepared by the city. In 2019, a radio transceiver was purchased Kenwood D710, which can be activated at the EOC when needed and operated by SPARC members. Operators would receive reports from the field and relay them to city services. The challenge, however, is effectively delivering this information from residents to the operating station.
Three possible solutions were presented during the meeting: MeshCore, GMRS, and amateur radio. The discussion included a model in which designated individuals responsible for specific areas would collect information from residents and then pass it on using the available method. This solution would help reduce the burden on the operator working at the EOC by limiting the number of individual reports.
The next stage will involve developing an operating procedure specifying the communication resources to be used, preparing operators to operate the EOC radio station, and defining procedures according to the type of hazard—for example, an earthquake, fire, or flood. The organizer also shared three presentations from the meeting covering MeshCore, GMRS, and the use of amateur radio in EmComm.