Ham radio: Old technology gets new respect
ATLANTA Seeking reliable backup communication in a crisis, emergency managers are finding new solutions in an old technology: ham radio.
Its just another avenue, another opportunity for us to be able to communicate, said Herb Schraufnagel, public safety captain with Emory University Hospital Midtown.
Emory HealthCare is among a growing number of hospital systems to adopt ham radio. Hospital administrators and government officials took a lesson from Hurricane Katrina, which left some Gulf Coast medical centers isolated from the outside world, as landlines and cell towers failed.
Link to article:
http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2014/05/19/ham-radio-old-technology-gets-new-respect/?intcmp=featuresTerry,
That was very good press for Amateur Radio. I had seen it earlier and was going to post it as well.
Yes, the normal infrastructure often dies during these major events. With a wire and a transceiver you can get on the air and get the message through.
Some folks poo poo the emergency service work that other hams enjoy, but its becoming a good slice of the pie on why we are still around!
Joe, GMS
