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Author Topic: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?  (Read 1515 times)

KJ6SFZ

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How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« on: October 16, 2020, 08:40:57 PM »

I'm going to ask this as a simple question because I want to understand the thought process and actions that more experienced hams would take during an emergency.

You're out about 30 miles away from anyone in the middle of nowhere on a hot day, or at night, and you have a VHF/UHF radio in your vehicle. You or someone with you has an emergency and needs immediate help but your vehicle has a mechanical issue. You grab your cell phone and there's no service. You do not have a repeater list handy. What would you do?

Basically, how would you go about trying to contact someone in a situation where you have a dual-band radio, but dont know the local repeaters? Are there common frequencies people would jump to for this type of thing? Would you scan various frequencies manually or automatically? I'm not sure how to do this and I know I'd have to try and figure out PL tones and offset as well.

Thanks.
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KG5AHC

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #1 on: October 16, 2020, 09:29:35 PM »

For a planned trip and I plan to bring a radio... I would prepare a list of repeaters along the route, program them into my radio.... but you said no list..   soo..

I would... try the 146.520 simplex frequency. a few times.

if I heard a repeaters just before or during the incident, but did not know anything about them, I would try calling mayday on the repeater's transmit frequency (in simplex mode on my radio) hoping there was someone nearby who would hear me directly. and broadcast that i needed help. ask them to reply simplex. ask them to help contact 911 for example, and give me the repeater tone frequency etc etc. 

Fortunately, repeaters are supposed to identify themselves periodically, and some of them will announce the pl tone.  Otherwise I will just be hunting by keying up a simplex call on every typical repeater frequency like 145.1700, 145.1900, 145.2300 etc etc

I could be totally off-base, so i am looking forward to hearing how others would solve this problem.

Regards,
Jeff KG5AHC

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KF4HR

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #2 on: October 16, 2020, 09:44:23 PM »

First, if you were planning a trip 30 miles from nowhere, in an area I wasn't  familiar with, I'd definitely want to bring a pocket repeater atlas or something similar.  Assistance might be found by scanning the bands but of course your rig will only stop on a repeater if someone is using it. 

There's always a chance you might not be within range of a VHF or UHF repeater, or within simplex range of another station.  Personally if I was on such a venture I would not rely exclusively on ham radio for an emergency situation.  I'd also carry an EPRIB (Emergency Beacon) and/or SPOT Satellite Messenger.

KF4HR
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W7XTV

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #3 on: October 16, 2020, 10:35:03 PM »

It happened to me in 1994, when my van broke down just outside Oklahoma City on I-44 late at night.  I was able to find a repeater that was active (no PL), broke into the conversation, and one of the guys called the state cops. 

Turned out that we were only 4 miles from the Motel 6 that we had reservations at, but I still needed a tow.  It was a weekend, so I had to wait until Monday to get the van fixed (repair shop was only two blocks away), but all was well.
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W4FID

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #4 on: October 17, 2020, 03:58:00 AM »

Rule # 1. Common sense. If you're not experienced at boating don't go out in the Gulf of Mexico in a small boat. If you're not experienced at hiking don't try a trail in the mountains alone. If you're going to be driving in a very remote area plan ahead. Some snacks, water, and a repeater guide are as basic as watching your gas gage and checking the air in your tires before you leave. The ideas already mentioned to try for a repeater or simplex are good ones. But my first try would be to stand on the roof of the car and raise my cell phone as high as I can reach and see if that extra gives me a connection. There are places -- but not a lot of them -- where cell coverage isn't along highways.
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WA9AFM

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #5 on: October 17, 2020, 06:00:14 AM »

...also, leave a trip plan with friends outlining your trip plans, route, timeline, etc .
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K0UA

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #6 on: October 17, 2020, 12:19:30 PM »

You said you had no cell service, BUT just so you know for next time you can download a simple app on your smartphone called repeater directory which will show you all repeaters on the band or bands of your choice and their distances from you with all of their parameters. Heck if you have one of the Yaesu radios with blu-tooth it can even program them into the rig. But in any case, it will show you all you need, and it needs no cell service to work. Far easier then the little book, and it is always in your pocket.
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73  James K0UA

KJ6SFZ

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #7 on: October 17, 2020, 08:37:45 PM »

You said you had no cell service, BUT just so you know for next time you can download a simple app on your smartphone called repeater directory .... and it needs no cell service to work. Far easier then the little book, and it is always in your pocket.

Thanks for telling me about that it doesn't need cell service! I'm glad they designed it so that it downloads the data.

By the way, I've not been in the above situation, but I wanted to ask in case it ever happened.

When I do go out far, I do bring a ton of stuff so that even if we got stranded, we could survive for days or even be able to walk and find people.. But I thought it was an interesting discussion in a technical sense to hear about what different folks would do.
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WW5F

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #8 on: October 18, 2020, 05:46:12 AM »

My IC-V8000 has a tone scan function that'll tell me the tone being used if I find an active repeater frequency.

Check to see if your radio has a tone scan function and become familiar with it.  Or if you're in the market for a VHF/UHF FM mobile radio, check to see if it has a tone scan function before your buy it.

I'm pretty sure if I was out in the middle of no where and needed to contact someone, I could put my V8000 into VFO mode and spin the big knob until I found an active repeater, then Tone Scan function, standard offset (+ or - 600) and then see if I could kerchunk it.

When I'm in the shack, I leave my IC-V8000 on 6.52.  Every couple of months, I hear a call for anyone listening from someone driving by on I-20 and I answer.  I almost always hear them tell me the last time someone answered was in Dallas/Arlington/Ft Worth TX or Shreveport LA.  I'm pretty sure 6.52 would be mostly useless unless you're within range of a big city.
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KG7LEA

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #9 on: October 22, 2020, 05:14:54 PM »

One important piece of information is your location. If you can download Google maps for the area you are in, you can consult a map even without cell or wi-fi service.

Many portable radios have a GPS feature than will give you a decimal lat and long. Know how to use it. Know what the information means.
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NA4IT

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #10 on: October 23, 2020, 05:28:43 AM »

One important piece of information is your location. If you can download Google maps for the area you are in, you can consult a map even without cell or wi-fi service.

Many portable radios have a GPS feature than will give you a decimal lat and long. Know how to use it. Know what the information means.

I will second this. There are also Mapping Apps that work offline in a smart phone. They do need the GPS. You can download area maps of your trip, and then read the coordinates, or at least a road name and approximate distance to some town or other land mark.

As for using your radio, I would pre-load a set of frequencies you may encounter along the way. When you make your call, I would do it like this:

"Break, break, break. This is KX4XXX, my name is John Doe, and I have an emergency, can anyone assist me?"

When someone responds, say your call and name again, and tell them the type of emergency, the help needed, the number of injured, and your location the bast you can determine. Then, monitor that frequency or repeater, as the emergency dispatch may need further information.
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W1NJC

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #11 on: October 23, 2020, 07:42:17 AM »


When someone responds, say your call and name again, and tell them the type of emergency, the help needed, the number of injured, and your location the bast you can determine. Then, monitor that frequency or repeater, as the emergency dispatch may need further information.

This, but always give location first in case communication is interrupted.

Ideally you would have programmed or at least know of local repeaters where you are.  You can try all of the tones if you know the freq of a repeater nearby.  Of course if one is active you can tone-scan or try TX on the output.
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KF5LJW

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #12 on: October 30, 2020, 05:19:24 PM »

Like everyone else, use your cell phone.
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VE3NNM

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #13 on: October 31, 2020, 08:20:19 PM »

Like everyone else, use your cell phone.

Whereas one of the conditions in the original poster's scenario was "You grab your cell phone and there's no service", I doubt that would be productive. Unless you mean lobbing it at a passing vehicle. I'm sure if you bounced it off the hood or nailed one of the windows they would stop. They might or might not be willing to help you after that, however.

« Last Edit: October 31, 2020, 08:22:24 PM by VE3NNM »
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N9LCD

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Re: How to handle a personal emergency using ham radio?
« Reply #14 on: November 08, 2020, 04:38:34 PM »

Quote
You grab your cell phone and there's no service.

So you grab your mic and start calling VHF & UHF; simplex frequencies; nationwide calling frequencies.

Nobody answers!  So what do you do?

Put your head between your legs and kiss your posterior "good-by".
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