Radio Operator Volunteer

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The Washoe County Amateur Radio Emergency Service consists of licensed Radio Amateurs who have voluntarily registered their qualifications and equipment for communications duty in the public service when disaster strikes.

To join the Washoe County Amateur Radio Emergency Service, please review the Membership Requirements, then fill out the registration form at our web site.

http://www.wcares.us/join/index.shtml

Every licensed Amateur, regardless of membership in the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) or any other local or national organization, is eligible for membership in the Washoe County Amateur Radio Emergency Service. The only prerequisite, other than possession of an Amateur Radio license, is a sincere desire to serve. Because the Washoe County Amateur Radio Emergency Service is an Amateur service, only Amateurs are eligible for membership. The possession of emergency-powered equipment is desirable, but is not a requirement for membership.

To become a member of the Washoe County Amateur Radio Emergency Service, you must:

• Hold a valid FCC Amateur Radio license. Your license class may determine your eligibility for participating in certain operating assignments, but is otherwise not important.

• Live or work in Washoe County, or receive an exemption from the Emergency Coordinator.

• Declare any active commitments you may have to other emergency responder or disaster relief agencies or organizations.

• Agree to maintain current information about you in the Member Database, including contact information, your level of training and course completions, and your resource capabilities (equipment and personal availability). This information is kept private and is not available to the public.

• Commit to complete the minimum training and course requirements and provide copies of certificates of completion to the Emergency Coordinator.

• Pledge to meet participation expectations regarding training meetings, drills and other exercises.

• Make yourself reasonably available to respond to emergency deployments to help fulfill the Washoe County Amateur Radio Emergency Service's primary mission.

Simply having an Amateur license and a radio does not make one an effective communicator. Adequately trained and qualified communicators are critical to the success of Washoe County Amateur Radio Emergency Service and to our ability to provide communications for our Served Agencies. To be deployed by Washoe County Amateur Radio Emergency Service during a declared emergency or disaster, members must hold appropriate credentials that reflect the required National Incident Management System (NIMS) training requirements.

To conform to these standards, Washoe County Amateur Radio Emergency Service has adopted a tiered membership credentialing system. Each membership level has specific training and course requirements. As you progress through the membership levels, you will given increasing responsibilities and will be able to participate in the full range of ARES/RACES missions.

The training courses consist of emergency communications courses offered by the American Radio Relay League and several National Incident Management System (NIMS) courses available online, free of charge. The FEMA courses are part of the National Training Program and are the same courses required for local, state and federal emergency management and incident response personnel, as well as other non-government disaster services personnel.