Disaster Relief Realities in Mississippi

I have been in Mississippi since September 5th as an ARRL member and volunteer for the Red Cross and Salvation Army.

There has been next to none health and welfare trafficking on the HF bands.

Most of our work here in Hattiesburg, MS, 80 miles north of the coast, has been feeding the poor and hungry. Katrina was a Category 2 Hurricane when it hit here with 120 MPH winds. Most signs, trees, and infrastructure here and in the area are significantly damaged or destroyed.

We use our radios to work with the emergency response vehicles (ERVs) to stay in contact with the kitchen where our net control is located.

We go out in these trucks that look like an ambulance on steroids, and serve food. We look for people who need medication and those without clean water etc....

The children are the hardest part of this job. There are a lot of biting bugs and some kids coming in for a meal are pasted with bites. Most communities are filled with fallen trees and extensive damage. They are just now getting power back to a limited degree.

We report of this in. We helped load mobile kitchens, with up to 500 hot meals, and we put in 14-16 hour days helping to pas them out. This is what we do with the majority of our time.

Many of us showed up with generators, HF systems, etc. When all we really needed was a 50-watt VHF rig, a handheld, and a chainsaw.

In other words, if you are looking for a burning 747 on the beach, you'll get frustrated and go home. Leave your pride there at the house before you get on the road.

Starting with just two hams, we now have a core group here of 12-16 hams with 3-4 rotating in and out. I am the longest-term ham remaining. I plan to rotate out soon to let a new volunteer ham come in as my replacement.

We built a great communication network with Red Cross centers, the ERVs, and other stations. Come this Saturday, the kitchens are moving out and so are our ERVs.

In other words, we will soon be finished with our mission in Hattiesburg.

Some of us have served between 3,000-5,000 meals. Two percent of our time has been spent on the radio except for net control.

We have slept on the floor of the Red Cross Center offices, as there is no room for us in the shelter. Two nights ago, I slept in the copier room. -- So much for bringing my tent. We eat shelter food and we blend into the town.

You'll see a lot of Army National Guard. -- A lot of choppers. -- Many convoys of electrical truck contractors and ANG. But that is it for excitement. The damage is something to see but that wears off after a day or two.

This is not about ham radio as much as it is about people skills. Volunteer and your ham skills will most likely be needed somewhere. Church groups in particular. Join an existing Red Cross group, and you will be surprised by what you can do. And don't hold back all because you hold a lower class ticket.

Realize that you will be in the middle of several thousand volunteers. You might have little to do unless you look for opportunities.

My advice is to wait, as everyone gets rotated out. And realize that this will be a very long effort of volunteers to help rebuild this state. Mississippi has been devastated. Please consider coming down with you VHF rig(s).

Contacting the ARRL is a good place to begin as they supply hams to the Red Cross.

It is not exciting thrill action work. But it is steady consistent urgent work that needs help -- And you will be rewarded at your efforts many times over.

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