Bucks County ARES – Lower Bucks American Red Cross Exercise

An Integrated Training Exercise – March 12-16, 2006

Exercise Purpose

To provide supplemental communications to the Lower Bucks American Red Cross during a flood event in the Yardley area during NWS Severe Weather Exercise Week March 12 – 16, 2006. To also be able to pass weather relay weather and flooding conditions observed to SKYWARN Net control.

Exercise ObjectivesEstablish operations during NWS Severe Weather Exercise WeekTest Bucks ARES notification and activation procedures.Coordinate and assist Lower Bucks Red Cross with multi-operational and multi-agency communications.Establish communications at multiple sites within 2 hours. Demonstrate BCARES interoperability with multiple served agencies: working with Lower Bucks Red Cross, County Emergency Management; Township Emergency Management, NWS/SKYWARN and Local Hospitals as well as “out of county” emergency and public agencies.Demonstrate GPS tracking (APRS) and text messaging as a disaster assessment tool.Test the LB Red Cross UHF commercial radio equipment.Formally evaluate and assess the exercise.

IS-139 Exercise Design Considerations

Controller – Bucks EOC - Net Control StationSimulator – TBD or as planned in this presentationEvaluators – Harris Stein-E.C., BCARES Jason Bauer, Harford Drexler, Bob Nice -

BCARES Section A.E.C.’s Red Cross Liaison – Keller Taylor Training Coordinator – Chris McCormick

NarrativeSevere weather affecting the entire area.Flooding along the Delaware River.Yardley and surrounding area significantly impacted.

Lower Bucks Red Cross responding to flooding in the Yardley area with resources for community care, mass

sheltering and victim information gathering.

LBARC information post set-up at Yardley Community Center

Yardley Fire House EOC on-site emergency

operations center and staging area.

LBARC shelter set-up at Pennwood Middle School

for providing help and mass care for those victims

displaced.

Falls Township EOC on standby with additional emergency resources.

Hospital X on standby for victim injuries, trauma,

mass careand medical support.

Bucks County EMA in Ivyland has been activated

to support Township operations and pooling,

preparing additional inventoried resources for eventual deployment if

requested.

Exercise General Layout

Detailed Map - East

Detailed Map - West

LB ARC UHF Communications General Map

LB ARC UHF Communications Detailed Map

Operations – BCARES Call Out – 147.090 Repeater

1 – Net Control Station Operator2 – Operators needed at Lower Bucks ARC 1 – Operator to Yardley Community Center1 – Operator to Yardley Fire House/Local EOC1 - Operator to Falls Township EOC1 – Operator to Hospital “X” – Em. Room Area1 – Operator to Shelter Operation1 – Operator to Bucks Co. EOC - Ivyland1 – Operator-Damage Assessment (APRS/GPS)1 – Operator-Relay Station/Cross Band MobileAdditional assignments to be determined with additional manpower volunteer resources.

Operations – Lower Bucks ARC HQ

Provide communications between Red Cross HQ and Red Cross field sitesEstablish communications between Red Cross HQ and Bucks EMA, Ivyland.Test additional communication modes including voice and digital.

Operations – Yardley Establish a Cross-Band repeater at Pennwood Middle School Red Cross Shelter UHF Side for Downtown Yardley Tactical Locations

Yardley Community Center Yardley – Makefield Firehouse EOC

VHF Side for Repeater 147.090 Communications Attempt VHF side with Simplex Communications

with Lower Bucks Red Cross HQ

Utilize APRS/GPS Mobile to simulate disaster assessment team.

Yardley Cross-Band Repeater

Yardley Community Center UHF

Pennwood MS Red Cross Shelter UHF/VHF

RepeaterAlt. Simplex

Yardley – Makefield FD/EOC UHF

Lower Bucks Red Cross HQ

Levittown

Bucks County EOCIvyland

147.090 Repeater

Falls Twp EOC Fairless Hills

Repeater and Alt Simplex Relay

Alt. Simplex Relay

Alt. Simplex Direct

Priority Channel

Damage Assessment APRS/GPS Mobile UHF

Priority Channel

Hospital “X”

LB Red Cross UHF Test

Yardley Community Center LB ARC UHF

Fairless Hills UHF Commercial Repeater

Site

Yardley – Makefield FD/EOC LB ARC UHF

Lower Bucks Red Cross HQ

Levittown

Damage Assessment APRS/GPS Mobile LB

ARC UHF

Pennwood MS Red Cross Shelter LB ARC

UHF

APRS/GPS Damage Assessment

VHF Radio

Data Interface

Ham Compute

r

VHF Radio

Data Interface

Mobile DA Team

LB ARC HQ

VHF Radio

Data Interface

APRS DIGI

Graphics by - Loring Kutchins W3QA EPA Asst SEC, Digital

ARES Digital Network Management Team

Operations – Yardley FD EOC

Provide communications between the Yardley FD EOC and the Community Center (LB ARC Information Center)Provide a means of communications between the Yardley EOC and Bucks County EOCUtilize and test the LB ARC Commercial UHF equipment

Operations – Yardley Community Center

Provide communications between the Community Center (LB ARC Information Center) and LB ARC HQProvide communications between the Community Center and Yardley EOCUtilize and test the LB ARC Commercial UHF equipment

Operations – Pennwood MS Shelter

Provide cross-band capabilities between UHF (Yardley tactical locations) and VHF 147.090Be prepared to provide and effectively operate cross-band capabilities between UHF (Yardley tactical locations) and VHF Simplex Utilize Falls Township EOC for Relay on Simplex if

necessary.

Utilize and test the LB ARC Commercial UHF equipment

Operations – Falls Twp EOC

Standby for Falls Twp EMA activation due to floodingBe prepared for Simplex Relay for Yardley locations

Operations – LB Red Cross HQ

Be prepared for Simplex Relay for Yardley locationsProvide administration communications to Bucks EOCUtilize and test the LB ARC Commercial UHF equipment

Operations – Hospital “X”

Standby for any health and welfare traffic from affected area.Establish communications links between Hospital X, Emergency Management Agencies and Red Cross.

Operations – Bucks Co. EOC

Establish communications links and monitor events in Lower Bucks CountyPass information and data from Crisis Area to County EOC OfficialsMobilize additional ARES resources for possible deployment and relief. Establish tactical ARES Net – Frequency TBD Establish Digital Operations (Winlink/APRS)

Operations – APRS/GPS Damage Assessment

MobileProvide location information utilizing APRS/GPS technologyHave available voice communications to operate on Yardley tactical UHF to cross-band repeat & County net on 147.090 when requiredUtilize and test the LB ARC Commercial UHF equipment

Evaluation

The Evaluator will: Determine if each objective has been

accomplished Determine how effective each objective was

accomplished Prepare formal report

Highlight successes and suggest improvements Review with BCARES EPG and LB ARC

Present report findings at Red Cross Disaster Services Monthly Leadership Meeting

Present report findings at BCARES General Meeting