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Hurricane Wilma - Amateur Radio Emergency Service

Contributed by: Don Wheeler on 12/13/2005

Tuesday morning, Oct. 18, 2005, Indian River County Department of Emergency Management contacted Amateur Radio Emergency Service EC Bud Holman, WA4ASJ, and advised possible activation during the week. Bud held a Resource Net Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, with 28 participants available. Indian River County ARES Operations Net was activated Sunday 15:00 EDT, and was located in the communications room at the EOC. Total of 13 shelters, special needs shelters, Red Cross Chapter House and 2 hospitals were manned during the storm.

At the peak intensity of the hurricane, the tower atop the EOC fell and stripped a hole in the roof of the building. Within 2 minutes, rain was falling in the EOC and all ESF personnel were forced to gather their equipment and vacate to the County Commission Chambers. With no advanced notice, John Conefrey, W4IVW, ARES, ACS, Skywarn, was able to take over as net control from his station at the hospital. Communications with the EOC was maintained with the use of a 2 M hand talkie and a magnetic mount antenna which was affixed to a steel folding chair in the County Chambers. Once the winds had dropped to tropical force, all EOC staff gathered their equipment and drove to the Indian River County Sheriff Department. The EOC was set up in the auditorium and net control resumed.


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