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Polk County Amateur Radio Emergency Service, ARES, provides emergency and public service communications to our served agencies. Getting the message through “when all else fails”.
Our next meeting will be a dinner get together More details to follow.
As a follow up to our meeting November 16th which highlighted our working together with CERT, there was a discussion regarding a FEMA course relating to CERT. You can find a link to IS-317.A: Introduction to Community Emergency Response Team (CERTs) by clicking here. Also, for IS-315.A: CERT and the Incident Command System (ICS), you can find information and training by clicking here.
Don’t forget our weekly nets on Wednesday evenings at 7pm on the WC4PEM repeater system.
Skywarn Recognition Day starts Friday, December 1, 2023 at 7:00 pm and runs twenty-four hours into Saturday, December 2nd, 2023 – more information is available by clicking here. Skywarn™ Recognition Day serves to celebrate the contributions to public safety made by amateur radio operators Skywarn™ Spotters during threatening weather. If you would like to participate, you can use this link to sign up. WX4TOR Operations at NWS Tampa Bay Area (Ruskin) December 2, 2023 13Z-21Z (8 am to 4 pm, Sat).
A Signal messenger group has been created for Polk County ARES members. Signal is a secure messaging platform that allows sharing of messages, photos, videos, voice, and video contacts.
If you’re not currently using Signal, you will find it in the Android Play store by clicking here. If you are an iPhone user, you will find the app in the Apple Appstore by clicking here.
Once you are on Signal, please send an email to Russ Delaney, N4RTD by clicking here, and let him know you have the app as well as your phone number. Once that has been completed and we will get you added to the Polk ARES Signal messaging group.
The Signal app is free and it provides many benefits including the ability to delete a message you may not have wanted to send, the ability to hit one button and share your location with others, share contact information, or send a file. It has many other advantages over standard SMS messaging.
The NI4CE System tab on the top level menu has been updated to include the NXDN system of repeaters along with the wide-coverage analog repeaters.
Our focus is on preparation and training for wireless communications during disasters and public service events. A Statewide Florida Emergency website has been opened. Come check it out.
The Imperial Polk County ARES Net is held every Wednesday at 7:00pm EST on the following frequencies on the Polk County Emergency Management, WC4PEM, repeater system:
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146.985 neg. offset, 127.3 PL tone in Dundee, FL
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444.950 pos. offset, 127.3 PL tone in Frost Proof, FL (S Polk County)
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444.625 pos. offset, 127.3 PL tone near Interstate 4 and US Highway 27 (NE Polk County)
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443.900 pos. offset, 127.3 PL tone in NW Lakeland, FL (Kathleen, FL)
This is a wide area linked repeater system. Pick the repeater located closest to you. You should be able to reach one of our repeaters with a 5 watt HT from anywhere in Polk County. If you are not, please contact Polk ARES through our contact page and we will help you find an antenna solution.
Click here for a coverage map of the WC4PEM repeater system.
In addition to the above repeaters, there is also a WC4PEM D-Star Gateway repeater located in Bartow on 444.4875. You can view the dashboard for this repeater by clicking here.
