If you would like to become a member of SELARC, please print out and complete the application/renewal form and return it with your check to: P.O. Box 1324, Hammond LA 70404. Thanks!

The club needs members to take nomination for positions of President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer, for the July election of officers. The duties for each are described in the SELARC Constitution. Please contact the board / [email protected] with your interest or suggested nominations.

• Tim Desmond KI5OUN

The following is the updated membership roster with corrections after the April meeting:

==> Amateur Radio Credited with Rescue of Back-Country Hiker in Tennessee
A back-country hiker was rescued from Great Smoky Mountains National Park with assistance from amateur radio after she became exhausted on the trail and possibly dehydrated. A member of the hiking group on the park's Little River Trail, Tim Luttrell, KA9EBJ, put out a call on the evening of April 11 via the W4KEV linked VHF repeater in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, requesting assistance in extricating the injured member. No cell phone service was available at the location, and Luttrell's signal was spotty at times, owing to the mountainous terrain.
Responding was David Manuel, W5DJR, who obtained more information and called 911, which routed the call to Great Smoky Mountains National Park Emergency Medical Service (GSMNP EMS). The national park EMS relayed through Manuel a request for the group to continue down the trail as far as possible to shorten the rescue time. ...

==> ARISS-USA Seeks Volunteers to Further its Mission
The US segment of Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS-USA) is seeking volunteers to support its mission. ARISS-USA is best known for providing opportunities, mostly for students, to speak via ham radio with astronauts on board the ISS. Less known is its important role in providing and supporting amateur radio equipment for the ISS (NA1SS), which could offer backup communication in an emergency. Its primary objective is educational -- to inspire, teach, and engage youth and communities in science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics via amateur radio.
...

==> Bill Introduced to Designate April 18, 2022, as National Amateur Radio Operators Day
Arizona Congresswoman Debbie Lesko has reintroduced a resolution with bipartisan support to designate April 18, 2022, as National Amateur Radio Operators Day. Introduced on April 19, the measure recognizes the important contributions amateur radio operators have made. She introduced a similar bill in the last Congress. ...

==> ARRL, American Red Cross Renew Memorandum of Understanding
ARRL and the American Red Cross (ARC) have renewed their long-standing Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for another 5 years. The MOU spells out how ARRL and the American Red Cross will work cooperatively during a disaster response.
"We are pleased to extend our partnership with the American Red Cross," ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR, said. "This agreement details how ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES) volunteers will interface with Red Cross personnel within the scope of their respective roles and duties whenever the Red Cross asks ARES volunteers to assist in a disaster or emergency response." ...

==> FCC Issues Enforcement Advisory
On April 20, the FCC's Enforcement Bureau issued a new Enforcement Advisory, repeating the admonishments contained in a January Advisory that no licensee or user of the Amateur or Personal Radio Services may use any radio equipment in connection with unlawful activities of any nature. The Commission specifically cautioned that individuals found to have used radios in connection with any illegal activity are "subject to severe penalties, including significant fines, seizure of the offending equipment, and in some cases, criminal prosecution." ...

==> National Hurricane Conference Set for June 14 - 17
The National Hurricane Conference will take place June 14 - 17 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The primary goal of the National Hurricane Conference is to improve hurricane preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation in the US, the Caribbean Basin, and the Pacific. The conference serves as a national forum for federal, state, and local officials to exchange ideas ...

==> Yasme Foundation Releases Chronicles of Amateur Radio DX History
The Yasme Foundation has released two chronicles of amateur radio DX history that make for compelling reading -- a downloadable edition of Yasme: The Danny Weil and Colvin Radio Expeditions, by Jim Cain, K1TN, and the extended article Danny Weil -- a Dreamer of Distant Lands Who Took the Amateur Radio Trip of a Lifetime, by Martti Laine, OH2BH. ...

==> Updated Radio Frequency Exposure Rules Become Effective on May 3 The FCC has announced that rule changes detailed in a lengthy 2019 Report and Order (R&O) governing RF exposure standards go into effect on May 3, 2021. The new rules do not change existing RF exposure (RFE) limits but do require that stations in all services, including amateur radio, be evaluated against existing limits, unless they are exempted. For stations already in place, that evaluation must be completed by May 3, 2023. After May 3 of this year, any new station, or any existing station modified in a way that's likely to change its RFE profile -- such as different antennas or placement, or greater power -- will need to conduct an evaluation by the date of activation or change. ...

==> St. Vincent Radio Amateurs on Alert During Volcano Emergency
Donald de Riggs, J88CD, on the Caribbean island of St. Vincent, says that on April 13, the 42nd anniversary of the 1979 eruption of the La Soufrière volcano, island residents were awakened to another column of volcanic ash creating a thick blanket obscuring part of the eastern sky as the volcano continues to erupt violently.
"Almost all residents in the Red Zone have been evacuated, save for a few diehards who will not move, for reasons unknown," he said.
Since the effusive eruption began last December, local hams have been in a state of readiness via 2-meter networks and regional networks via HF. A 24-hour regional HF network and vigil has been active since violent eruptions resumed earlier this month to provide communication support should telephone service be disrupted by the volcanic hazard. ...

==> National Science Foundation Funds Creation of Research Lab at Alaska's HAARP
A 5-year, $9.3 million National Science Foundation (NSF) grant will allow the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) Geophysical Institute to establish a new research observatory at the High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP). A former military facility, HAARP is now operated by UAF and is home to HAARP Amateur Radio Club's KL7ERP. The new Subauroral Geophysical Observatory for Space Physics and Radio Science will be dedicated to exploring Earth's upper atmosphere and geospace environment. The facility's 33-acre Ionospheric Research Instrument will be the centerpiece of the observatory. ...

==> Florida Emergency Communications Exercise Combines Hams, Agencies, State, and NGOs
A 2-hour emergency communications exercise on March 19 in Florida was deemed "wildly successful," while resulting in 21 specific suggestions for improvement of issues recognized. Sponsored by Florida Baptist Disaster Relief, a non-governmental (NGO) "served organization," the exercise simulated a combined disaster of multiple tornadoes crossing north-central Florida closely followed by a terrorist attack on telecommunications, which took down large chunks of internet and telephone service.
Pop-up situations, called "injects" by event planners, simulated multiple dire situations and hinted at even larger attacks, designed to create possible rumor issues. Multiple counties arranged for volunteers to help with the simulation, working in shelters and transmitting status reports of individualized disaster scenarios to county emergency operations centers (EOCs). Volunteers directed by actual or simulated EOC officials aggregated situational awareness and formulated status and resource request messages, sent by voice or digital mode to a volunteer from the actual Florida agency that handles disaster communications. Appropriate responses were sent back by radio. ...