WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE #25

WCF SECTION CABINET MEMBERS RECENT HOSPITALIZATIONS

Within the last week, two of the WCF Section Cabinet have been in the hospital.  Ben Henley KI4IGX, our Section Emergency Coordinator, was hospitalized last week after his doctors have observed some difficulty with his heart medication regiment.  Ben will be in the hospital for one to two weeks until his medication is adjusted.  Ben is in good spirits and looks forward to coming home soon.

Until Ben has returned home, Darrell Davis KT4WX has appointed Randy Payne K4EZM, an Assistant Section Manager and ASEC, as Acting Section Emergency Coordinator, until the time Ben resumes his duties.  A special thank you to Randy for picking up these duties until Ben’s return.

Geoff Haines N1GY, our Technical Coordinator, was in the hospital last week for hip replacement surgery.  The surgery was successful and Geoff has already come home from hospital and has begun the road to recovery, which will take some time.

Your prayers and thoughts for Ben and Geoff are certainly welcome and appreciated.

END OF PRESS RELEASE

WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE #24

ARRL HEADQUARTERS GUEST SPEAKER FOR 4TH ANNUAL TECHCON

Bob Allison WB1GCM, the ARRL Lab Assistant Manager, will be our special guest for the 4th Annual TECHCON, which will be held on Saturday February 24, 2018 at the Polk County Emergency Operations Center between Winter Haven and Lakeland.

Bob resides with his wife, Kathy, KA1RWY, in Coventry, CT. As Senior Test engineer at the ARRL Laboratory, Bob tests the latest Amateur Radio related equipment for QST’s monthly Product Review Column. He also has written several Product Review articles, as well as many technical and historical articles for QST magazine. Prior to his work at the ARRL Laboratory, Bob worked at WVIT-NBCCT (Channel 30) for 28 years as a Broadcast Engineer and Studio Supervisor. Bob is a graduate of Ward Technical College at the University of Hartford. His Hobbies are Amateur Radio (41 years), antique phonographs, antique radios and enjoying his 1931 Model-A. Bob also volunteers as a tour guide at the Vintage Radio and Communications Museum in Windsor Connecticut.

END OF PRESS RELEASE

WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE #23

THE WCF PRESSER ISSUE #28 AUGUST 2017 IS NOW PUBLISHED

The WCF PRESSER Issue #28 for August 2017, has been published on the Section website, and the ARRL website. An announcement of the publication of the WCF PRESSER will be disseminated on the ARRL remailer shortly.  Please note that the WCF PRESSER is no longer disseminated on the ARRL remailer due to the expanded graphical content in the WCF PRESSER.

For the PDF version of this newsletter and past issues in PDF format go to http://arrlwcf.org/home/the-wcf-section-presser-arrl-west-central-florida-section-news/.

END OF PRESS RELEASE

WCF SECTION SPECIAL BULLETIN #2 – 1100 EDT – 8/01/17

TROPICAL DEPRESSION EMILY EXITS THE FLORIDA PENINSULA.  ALL WATCHES AND WARNINGS DISCONTINUED

Tropical Storm Emily made landfall at 1100 EDT on Monday July 31st at Anna Maria Island in coastal Manatee County.  Emily moved east through Manatee County and northern Hardee County in the afternoon hours, and then moved through southern Polk County in the evening hours.  Emily continued moving through Indian River County in the early morning hours and exited the east coast of Florida near Vero Beach.   Emily is currently located 120 miles east of Cape Canaveral and is moving towards the northeast at 14 MPH.  All watches and warnings for the ARRL West Central Florida Section have been discontinued except for a few localized river Flood Warnings in Hillsborough, Manatee, and Sarasota Counties.

The ARRL West Central Florida Section would like to thank all of the ARES, ACS, CERT and SKYWARN amateur radio operators who were on standby and ready to be deployed in case their services were requested by their served agencies.

This will be the last WCF SECTION SPECIAL BULLETIN on Tropical Depression Emily.

END OF SPECIAL BULLETIN

WCF SECTION SPECIAL BULLETIN #1 – 7/31/17 – 0800 EDT

TROPICAL STORM EMILY FORMS WEST OF TAMPA BAY EARLY THIS MORNING

At 0600 EDT, the National Hurricane Center began issuing Advisories on Tropical Depression Six, that formed overnight from an area of low pressure in the eastern Gulf of Mexico approximately 100 miles west of Tampa Bay.  At 0800, the National Hurricane Center found 45 MPH winds and upgraded Tropical Depression Six to Tropical Storm Emily.

cone graphictime of arrival graphic

At 0800 EDT, Tropical Storm Emily was located about 45 miles west-southwest of Tampa or about 50 miles west-northwest of Sarasota.  The maximum sustained winds are at 45 MPH and were located in the south side of the storm and movement was toward the east at 8 MPH.  The minimum center pressure was about 29.71 inches of mercury.   A Tropical Storm Warning is currently in effect for coastal Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee, and Sarasota counties.

To quote the National Hurricane Center, “The primary threat with this system is expected to be locally heavy rainfall across portions of the Florida peninsula during the next couple of days. However, an isolated waterspout will also be possible in the coastal waters within the warning area.”

Please stay tuned to the latest advisories from the National Hurricane Center and the National Weather Service Office in Ruskin, which covers all of the West Central Florida Section.  Also any ARES, ACS, or CERT, or SKYWARN amateur radio operators should be ready to activate in the highly unlikely event they are requested to do so by their served agencies.

END OF SPECIAL BULLETIN

WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE #22

JOE EISENBERG K0NEB TO SPEAK AT LOCAL RADIO CLUB MEETING IN NEW PORT RICHEY

Joe Eisenburg K0NEB, the CQ Magazine Editor for the kit building column, will be the special guest speaker at the next Gulf Coast Amateur Radio Club meeting in New Port Richey on Monday July 24th at 1900.  The doors to the clubhouse will open at 1800.  For details on the meeting location go to the West Central Florida Section website calendar entry for the Gulf Coast Amateur Radio Club meeting at http://arrlwcf.org/monthly-meetings/gulf-coast-amateur-radio-club-monthly-membership-meeting/.

 

END OF PRESS RELEASE

WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE #21

WCF SECTION HF ARES AND INFORMATION NET GETTING NEW FREQUENCY AND TIME

On Saturday July 8th, at the ARRL West Central Florida Section ARES Meeting, a proposal was submitted to the ARES Emergency Coordinators that had been submitted by Alan Gauzens WA4ATF, the Net Manager of the ARRL Information Net.  Gauzens stated in the proposal, that the ARRL Information Net on Saturday at 0730 on 3940 KHz, which was started nearly 40 years ago by Evelyn Gauzens W4WYR (SK), had seen declining participation over the last few years and proposed to discontinue the ARRL Information Net and offer the frequency and time slot to the West Central Florida Section for the West Central Florida Section HF ARES and Information Net.  The proposal was accepted by the Emergency Coordinators and Official Emergency Stations present.

The move to 3940 KHz had been necessitated by interference on 3913 KHz from two nets on both sides of the frequency.  Many times it was impossible to conduct a net on that frequency at that time.  An attempt was made to move to 3940 KHz at 0830 but another net was in operation on 3941 KHz at that time and the Section Staff was unaware of the frequency being occupied.

The change will be effective on Saturday July 22nd.  The time will be at 0730 and the frequency will be 3940 KHz.  The alternate frequency will become 7247 KHz for net if band conditions are too short or otherwise not conducive for the net to take place on 75 Meters.

END OF PRESS RELEASE

WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE #20

SECTION ARES SIMULATED EMERGENCY TEST SET FOR AUGUST 12.

On Saturday July 8th, at the ARRL West Central Florida Section ARES Meeting which was held at the Hardee County EOC, the date for the 2017 ARRL West Central Florida Section ARES Simulated Emergency Test was set for Saturday August 12, 2017.  The primary goal of the Simulated Emergency Test is to test communications facilities between the various ten County Emergency Operations Centers and the State Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee.

For more details on the Simulated Emergency Test you may go to http://arrlwcf.org/wcf-special-events/west-central-florida-section-ares-simulated-emergency-test/

END OF PRESS RELEASE

WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE #19

THE WCF PRESSER ISSUE #27 JULY 2017 IS NOW PUBLISHED

The WCF PRESSER Issue #27 July 2017, has been published on the Section website, and the ARRL website. An announcement of the publication of the WCF PRESSER will be disseminated on the ARRL remailer shortly.  Please note that the WCF PRESSER is no longer disseminated on the ARRL remailer due to the expanded graphical content in the WCF PRESSER.

For the PDF version of this newsletter and past issues in PDF format go to http://arrlwcf.org/home/the-wcf-section-presser-arrl-west-central-florida-section-news/.

END OF PRESS RELEASE

WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE #18

THE WCF EXPERIMENTER – Summer 2017 – ISSUE HAS JUST BEEN PUBLISHED

The Summer 2017 edition of THE WCF EXPERIMENTER, the Official Technical Newsletter of the ARRL West Central Florida Section has just been published.  You may download the Summer 2017 edition at http://arrlwcf.org/download/wcfexperimenter/WCFExperimenter_3Q2017.pdf.  For all past issues of THE WCF EXPERIMENTER since its reboot a few years ago you may go to http://arrlwcf.org/home/the-wcf-experimenter-technical-newsletter/.

Geoff Haines N1GY, our Technical Coordinator for the West Central Florida Section is the editor of THE WCF EXPERIMENTER.  The next issue will be the FALL 2017 issue so now is the time to get busy writing an article for the next issue if you have a project or idea you would like to write about.  Send any submissions for THE WCF EXPERIMENTER to Geoff Haines N1GY at n1gy@arrl.net.

END OF PRESS RELEASE

1 31 32 33 34 35 49