Virginia Praises Amateur Response to Hurricane Flo

Special Bulletin 3  ARLX003
From ARRL Headquarters 
Newington CT  February 9, 2000
To all radio amateurs

SB SPCL ARL ARLX003
ARLX003 Virginia General Assembly praises hams

The Virginia General Assembly has approved a joint House-Senate
resolution praising the Amateur Radio response to Hurricane Floyd.
The resolution unanimously passed both chambers on January 27. A
signing ceremony has been set for February 17, 11:30 AM, at the
Capitol in Richmond.

The resolution praises the work of Virginia's ARES/RACES members
last September when Hurricane Floyd totally isolated the City of
Franklin, and rising flood waters forced city officials to abandon
their Emergency Operations Center, forcing the city to rely
completely on Amateur Radio for communication with the outside.

''With traditional lines of communication inoperable, the Amateur Radio operators, members of the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) and the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES), provided the only reliable communication into and out of the flood-ravaged Franklin area,'' the resolution says.

According to the resolution, the Hurricane Floyd activation was ''the widest geographical and longest-running ARES/RACES activation in
Virginia's history'' and involved nearly 150 ARES/RACES volunteers
who put in some 9500 hours of duty to help coordinate emergency
operations in Franklin.

''Due to the tireless efforts of amateur radio volunteers, the tragic
effects of Hurricane Floyd were mitigated, the lives of those in the
flood zone safeguarded, and the suffering of Franklin's residents
alleviated,'' the resolution said in expressing the General
Assembly's ''admiration and gratitude for the vital contributions of
Virginia's amateur radio operators.''

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