ARRL West Central Florida Section

POTENTIAL TROPICAL CYCLONE #1 – 2000 EDT – 6/02/22

At 1700 EDT, the National Hurricane Center began issuing advisories on Potential Tropical Cyclone #1.  This is the remnants of a eastern Pacific hurricane that crossed Central American and are now emerging into the southeastern Gulf of Mexico from the Yucatan Peninsula.

If and when this system becomes a Tropical Storm, it will be named Tropical Storm Alex and will be the first tropical storm of the 2022 Atlantic Hurricane Season.  However this year is not unique, as in several years in the recent past, we have often seen a Tropical Depression and or a Tropical Storm form either right before or just right after the beginning of the Atlantic Hurricane Season.  The Atlantic Hurricane Season began yesterday on June 1st and will run through November 30th.

At 700 PM CDT (0000 UTC), the disturbance was centered near latitude 21.5 North, longitude 87.5 West. The system is moving toward the north near 5 mph (7 km/h) and this motion is expected to continue tonight. A turn toward the northeast is expected on Friday, and a faster motion toward the northeast is expected Friday night and Saturday. On the forecast track, the system should move across the southeastern Gulf of Mexico through Friday night, and then move across the southern and central portions of the Florida Peninsula on Saturday.

Maximum sustained winds are near 35 mph (55 km/h) with higher gusts. The system is expected to become a tropical depression later tonight or on Friday and a tropical storm late Friday or Friday night.

* Formation chance through 48 hours…high…90 percent.
* Formation chance through 5 days…high…90 percent.

The estimated minimum central pressure based on surface observations is 1003 mb (29.62 inches).

COASTAL WATCHES/WARNINGS AND FORECAST CONE FOR STORM CENTER

SUMMARY OF 0800 PM EDT…0000 UTC…INFORMATION

LOCATION…21.5N 87.5W
ABOUT 80 MI…125 KM NNW OF COZUMEL MEXICO
ABOUT 500 MI…805 KM SW OF FT. MYERS FLORIDA
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS…35 MPH…55 KM/H
PRESENT MOVEMENT…N OR 360 DEGREES AT 5 MPH…7 KM/H
MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE…1003 MB…29.62 INCHES

SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT:

A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for…
* West coast of Florida south of the Middle of Longboat Key
* East coast of Florida south of the Volusia/Brevard County Line
* Florida Keys including the Dry Tortugas
* Lake Okeechobee
* Florida Bay
* Cuban provinces of Matanzas, Mayabeque, Havana, Artemisa, Pinar del Rio, and the Isle of Youth
* Northwestern Bahamas

FORECAST DISCUSSION:

The following excerpt is from the Forecast Discussion issued at 1700 EDT today:

“Satellite imagery, surface observations, and reports from an Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft show that a broad low pressure area is centered over the northeastern part of the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. This system is currently producing poorly organized convection in the northeastern quadrant due to the effects of 20-30 kt of southwesterly vertical wind shear. The central pressure is near 1003 mb, and earlier scatterometer data showed
winds near 30 kt well to the east of the center. Due to the possibility that the system could become a tropical storm with impacts in the Florida Keys, and portions of the Florida Peninsula and western Cuba, advisories are initiated on Potential Tropical Cyclone One with tropical storm watches issued for those areas.

The initial motion is 360/3. The system should turn northeastward during the next 12-24 h as it encounters the southern edge of the mid-latitude westerlies, and a general northeastward motion should continue through the end of the forecast period. The guidance is in good agreement that the system should cross the Florida Peninsula on Saturday. It should be noted that the guidance suggests the possibility that the center could re-form due to convective bursts, which would cause jumps in the track superimposed on top of the general northeastward motion.

The intensity and structure forecasts for this system are very uncertain. It has a large envelope and a large radius of maximum winds, and a combination of moderate to strong shear and interaction with an upper-level trough seem unfavorable for significant development over the Gulf of Mexico. The guidance does suggests slight development despite the hostile conditions, so the intensity forecast calls for the system to become a tropical depression in about 12 h and a tropical storm in about 24 h. However, these winds are likely to be well removed from the center. Interaction with a mid-latitude trough could allow some additional strengthening over the Atlantic, and this is reflected in the intensity forecast. Regardless of development, widespread heavy rain will occur over
portions of western Cuba, the southern Florida Peninsula, the Florida Keys, and the northwestern Bahamas in association with this system.”

SITUATION AND ACTIONS:

At the present time the following counties or portions of counties have a Tropical Storm Watch in effect:  Charlotte, Desoto, Hardee, Highlands, Inland Manatee, Polk, and Sarasota Counties.

At the present time, there have not been any requests for services from any of the ARES groups in the ten counties in the ARRL West Central Florida Section.

Note:  The Section ARES Alert Level simply reflects the activation status of local ARES groups in the ARRL West Central Florida Section.  Each ARES groups activates at the request of their served agencies and or in accordance with their local ARES plan.

All ARES, ACS, and CERT personnel are encouraged to check their equipment, supplies, and complete any necessary personal preparations.  All ARES, ACS, and CERT personnel are encouraged to continue to check each advisory issued by the National Hurricane Center in Miami and any advisories or Hurricane Local Statements issued by the National Weather Service Office in Ruskin.

LATEST NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER INFORMATION:

Public Advisories: https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/text/refresh/MIATCPAT1+shtml/022334.shtml?

Forecast Advisory: https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/text/refresh/MIATCMAT1+shtml/022052.shtml

Forecast Discussion:  https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/text/refresh/MIATCDAT1+shtml/022057.shtml

Latest NWS Rusking Hurricane Local Statement:  https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/text/WTUS82-KTBW.shtml

CONCLUSION

The next WCF SECTION SPECIAL BULLETIN on Potential Tropical Cyclone #1 will be issued following the 1700 EDT advisory unless conditions warrant an earlier issuance.

EAGLE NET FOR MONDAY 5/30/22 CANCELLED

Due to the severe weather situation and the activation of a SKYWARN Net on the NI4CE Repeater System, the Eagle Net on the NI4CE Repeater System was cancelled by the Net Manager, Dave Rockwell W4PXE for Monday May 30, 2022.  The net will resume normal operation on Tuesday May 31st, 2022 at 2030 hours.

END OF SPECIAL BULLETIN

SECTION ARES NET FOR MONDAY 5/30/22 CANCELLED

Due to the potential severe weather situation and the activation of a SKYWARN Net on the NI4CE Repeater, the Section ARES and Information Net on the NI4CE Repeater System was cancelled by the Net Manager, Sanford Wyatt KM4WXX for Monday May 30, 2022.  The net will resume normal operation on Monday June 6th, 2022 at 1930 hours.

END OF SPECIAL BULLETIN

EAST PASCO AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY HAMFEST FOR SPRING 2022 CHANGING DATES

On April 13, the East Pasco Amateur Radio Society (EPARS) announced that the East Pasco Amateur Radio Tailgate for Spring 2022 originally scheduled for Saturday May 7, 2022 has been rescheduled to Saturday May 28, 2022.  The reasons stated for the change was that the venue for the hamfest, Church Street Park, suddenly became unavailable for use by EPARS for the hamfest on the original scheduled date, shortly after EPARS obtained approval to use Church Street Park.

If anyone wants any further information about the EPARS Tailgate for Spring 2022, you may go to the EPARS website at http://eparsonline.org/

END OF PRESS RELEASE

ED ALLEN WA4ISB BECOMES A SILENT KEY

Edwin “Ed” Allen WA4ISB, one of the founders of the NI4CE Repeater System, became a Silent Key on Saturday April 16, 2022, after a brief stay in hospice care.

First licensed as an amateur radio operator in the mid 1960’s, Ed was co-founder of the Sarasota Emergency Radio Club (SERC) in 1976, and continued to remain active with SERC.  In 2001, Ed helped to create the West Central Florida Group Inc. (WCFG), which today operates the NI4CE Repeater system.  Ed, with his various relationships in the broadcast radio industry, helped WCFG to find and secure the sites they use today for the various NI4CE repeaters.  Ed also served as trustee for the NI4CE Repeater System, until recently stepping down from that role to be succeeded by Matt Copeland NC4FD, the current trustee.

Even though Ed worked professionally as a certified broadcast engineer for decades, he never lost his passionate interest and pursuit of amateur radio.

In his professional carrier, Ed was a certified broadcast engineer for numerous AM and FM broadcast stations since the late 1960’s, and recently retired from Cox Radio Tampa Bay as Chief Engineer for over 20 years.

It was Ed’s stated wish that in lieu of flowers or similar tributes, donations should be made in Ed’s memory to the West Central Florida Group, Inc.  There will be a Celebration Of Life for Ed on Saturday, May 14th, 2022 from 1200 until 1400 at Ed’s home in Sarasota.  The address information and any other details about the Celebration of Life will be available on the West Central Florida Group website at https://ni4ce.org.

END OF PRESS RELEASE

THE 25th ANNUAL FLORIDA QSO PARTY SET FOR LAST WEEKEND OF APRIL

The Florida Contest Group recently announced the 25th Annual Florida QSO Party will be held on Saturday April 30, 2022 from 1600Z (Noon EDT) through 0159Z (9:59 PM EDT) and on Sunday May 1, 2022 from 1200Z (8:00 AM EDT) and 2159Z (5:59 PM EDT), which is a 20 hour total operating period.   The 40, 20, 15, and 10 Meter bands will be used.  All 67 Florida Counties will be eligible for activation.

In honor of the 25th Florida QSO Party Anniversary, there will be the Florida QSO Party Silver Spelling Bee, which will have a total of 25 special 1×1 stations with one suffix for each letter of the alphabet except the letter X (FCC regulation). There are a total of 21 SSB and 21 CW stations active…The Florida QSO Party Silver Spelling Bee is a 1×1 Sweep and endorsed for either Mixed or CW or SSB modes.

For all the details on the Florida QSO Party, including the Florida QSO Party Silver Spelling Bee, please go to their Florida QSO Party website at https://www.floridaqsoparty.org.

END OF PRESS RELEASE

WCF SECTION ARES LUNCHEON AND MEETING FOR SPRING 2022 SCHEDULED

The ARRL West Central Florida Section ARES Luncheon and Meeting for the Spring of 2022 are now scheduled.  The ARRL West Central Florida Section ARES Meeting is scheduled for Saturday April 23, 2022 from 1300 until 1500, and will be held at the Hardee County Emergency Operations Center, located at 404 W. Orange St., in downtown Wauchula.  The meeting will be preceded by the customary ARRL West Central Florida Section ARES Luncheon on Saturday April 23, 2022 at 1100 and will be held at Paul’s Kitchen, located at 116 N. 4th Avenue near downtown Wauchula, just a few blocks from the Hardee County Emergency Operations Center.

The meeting will be a dual in-person and Zoom meeting.  For more information about the meeting including maps to the meeting and lunch venues and Zoom meeting info, please go to the Section ARES webpage at http://arrlwcf.org/wcf-section-programs/ares/.

END OF PRESS RELEASE

CHARLOTTE AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY TO CONDUCT COMMUNICATIONS EXERCISE

“The Charlotte Amateur Radio Society plans an emergency communications exercise to prepare for the 2022 hurricane season.  This exercise is part of the Charlotte Amateur Radio Society’s long-term multipart educational program to  ensure that radio amateurs in our area have a way to grow and practice the skills that may be used in a variety
of emergency communications situations.

The objective of this exercise is to evaluate our ability to gather information from local amateur radio operators using FM Simplex and pass the information to a local command station using JS8 Call.

Our primary goal is to test YOUR VHF and UHF voice communications on FM Simplex operating frequencies.

Can your equipment communicate with any of the portable stations? Can you contact all three portable stations? Will your HT work or do you need to be on your base rig? Do you have mobile capabilities?

You can operate your equipment in any or all three classes of operation:
1. BASE
2. MOBILE
3. HT (Handie-Talkie)

You will send your call sign, 6 digit grid square, Class, and power (100 watts, 50 watts, 5 watts, etc.) by FM voice on the designated frequencies listed below.  EXAMPLE: KM4LKC, EL96bx, Base, 50 watts.

Our portable operating stations below will confirm the receipt of your information. You can contact another portable station or change classes and try again. It may be possible to make 18 contacts (9 on VHF and 9 on UHF) depending on your equipment and location.

The secondary goal is to test each portable station’s capability to gather information and pass digital traffic to a central command station. Each of the portable stations will send their logged contact information to a central command station using JS8 Call on 6 meters.

CARS plans to deploy three (3) portable operating stations spread across the county. We expect to have stations in El Jobean, Murdock, and Punta Gorda.

Licensed Amateur radio operators from Charlotte County and the directly surrounding counties that are not members of CARS are encouraged to visit the CARS website for information about how they can help on the day of the event from their own radios. See www.carsfl.org.

If news organizations wish to observe the stations during setup and operations, please contact Douglas Young, KM4LKC email to: km4lkc@arrl.net”

END OF PRESS RELEASE

8th ANNUAL TECHCON SCHEDULE AND LIST OF PRESENTATIONS NOW AVAILABLE.

The speaking schedule and list of presentations are now available for download from the TECHCON webpage on the Section website at http://arrlwcf.org/wcf-special-events/wcftechconference/.  Darrell Davis KT4WX, Technical Coordinator, made the following comment about the posting of the schedule and list of presentations, “My apologies to all for making these available much later than I have planned.  I have been tied up with my Mom being in the hospital and rehab since the conclusion of Orlando Hamcation.  And thank you to all of you for your understanding, prayers, thoughts, and words of kindness.”

Any slide presentations, papers, or handouts produced by our various speakers will come online the morning of the General Presentations on the TECHCON webpage at http://arrlwcf.org/wcf-special-events/wcftechconference/.

As a reminder, the Friday Afternoon Workshop has been cancelled. The 8th Annual TECHCON will start tomorrow evening, Friday February 25 at 1800 with the Friday Evening Social, and the General Presentations will be on Saturday February 26. The doors to the Polk County EOC will open at 0800 and the presentations will begin at 0900. The conference will conclude between 1630 and 1700.

END OF PRESS RELEASE