Ham Radio APRS Saves the day! No cell service to dispatch Emergency services during Storm Ophelia 

As a fellow HAM radio operator, police officer in Northern New Jersey and prior Marine. I approve of this message. Arguably an antiquated means of communication it’s a resource I rather have than not.

I can tell this man has been waiting his entire life for this moment.

Cool story. If you haven't already, you might reach out to a local newspaper. This is the kind of thing that's good for the hobby.

I was in a major Earthquake that knocked out the phone lines for the entire area. This was the days before cell phones. This guy put up a sign offering to send messages out for loved ones outside the quake zone. He would call some other Ham, give a phone number and a message and that Ham would call the number to deliver the message. Dude worked until very late (3 or 4 am) sending messages out by radio. And he flat refused all offers of payment. Wouldn't even take donations. Real hero for sure.

As a fellow ham radio operator and Paramedic. I appreciate this.

After 9/11, I was stationed in lower Manhattan along with other HAMs from my area twice assisting the Red Cross with communications. We were keeping the repeater on the Chrysler building busy for quite some time.

Glad you could help! I do wish more repeater owners kept their autopatch, even if just for 911 calls.

KE0OXF here, as a volunteer firefighter/emt and the only ham radio operator in our my department, we had a similar situation in our district. We had a ham radio operator call in a smoke investigation that turned out to be a controlled burn that the homeowners didn't call in.

Thank you for doing this and sharing your story. When I first got started in ham radio in the 70s, there was no cell service, so we would report these types of incidents regularly. People were amazed that we could call for assistance from our cars. Now no one cares. In ‘89, I was in San José when the Loma Prieta earthquake hit. While there was limited cell service available, it took me two hours to get one call out to my family. Over the next few days, I listened as hams were placed in police and fire stations and in police cars and hospitals as the police and fire repeaters went down.

This all works when Hams dont abandon these LOCAL bands. I know many communities where you couldn't get a single person on a repeater even if you were screaming with your last dying breath. 146.52 and local repeaters should always be monitored by Hams. It is also helpful to have signs made for communities that advertise local Ham frequencies that are monitored and have them placed on the road (if possible) especially in very rural areas. Truck drivers have them up here where I live when you get up in the logging country to advertise what to monitor so you can communicate with them. I have seen it in Georgia many years ago where it advertised Ham and CB frequencies that were monitored for emergencies. Ham Radio has some outstanding capability and is used as seen in this video for simple emergencies. Wonderful job KD2GIY and kudo's to the law enforcement that are Hams that are able to assist. This is what Ham Radio should be.

"When all else fails; ham radio"

Ham Operator, Fire Fighter / EMT (ret), I approve and appreciate this video. So many people say "Huh?" When you mention ham radio in a sentence, but the moment we step into the light and save the day with proper & reliable communications from well trained operators, suddenly everyone wants to know more. Well done sir. Nice setup too! 73' from Central Maine.

Glad to see other HAMs in the wild getting help when and where it's needed quicker than anything else that's readily (and cost effectively) available. Edit: also bigs props to any HAMs supporting or running/maintaining existing repeaters and other networks. You never know when your net could quite literally be the difference between life and death

Many years ago before the cell phone was a thing this was how I always reported accidents. Even used the autopatch to phone one in in Charleston SC near the AFB

In the Netherlands, local emergency coordinators can reach out to HAM radio operators in the case of a complete systems failure, instated by the 1953 floods...

great job it's one thing we hams talk about emergency using ham radio but very few get it on video and let others see what it's like in a real emergency.

AA2BD I'm a member of JSARS here Toms River NJ. 08753 .This video needs to be shared showing how important Ham Radio is when there is an emergency and no way to get help, as we know, cell phones don't always work, hard to teach this to people in the digital age. Great video 👍🏻73s

I had a similar situation about 25 years ago, I was driving from Salida Colorado and just before Wellsville Colorado I came upon a guy on a motorcycle who had hit a Bear at abt 50 mph luckily he had a helmit on and was alive but in bad shape. Because there was no cell coverage on got on a 2meter Colorado Connection Repeater and got the guy help from Salida.😊

I helped from a park after my activation talking to a forest in NC when someone cut their hand with a hatchet. I was able to contact the hospital before they arrived so they would be ready. Same thing, cell phone was not in their area, but HF was no problem

HAM radio and APRS save the Day! I see your video editing skills have gone up to the next level! Here's to You HAM radio operator! Great job and great video!

Nicely Done Sir - as a Former Responder, you would get a Beer, Coffee, meal, whatever you wanted as soon as we cleared the scene.

One of the perks of being a HAM here in Alaska is you can register your vehicle with your call sign; pay one time to register it and never pay a renewal fee as long as you have a mobile installed in your vehicle. A portable does not count; must be permanently mounted mobile unit!

I'm sure the accident victim appreciates your help!

Nice work.Amateur Radio to the RESCUE! 73

Black forrest is my favorite ham radio

Just got my Amateur Extra... Why ... back in 1992 I went to my 20 yr high school reunion. The Landers CA 7.4 earthquake hit. We were at the epicenter. All landline phones were down in Yucca Valley. I was the only one that had a car phone and was able to assist . I am a big prepper since then and recommend getting your HAM license. It's an easy test.

It's a shame our nation's infrastructure is so neglected that impoverished areas like this still don't have decent cell service. This guy just proved it's possible to achieve cell coverage by using a small portable radio not much different in technology than a cell tower. It all comes down to mismanagement of resources.

Much love dude 🙆♥️ this wont go unnotice. YT algorithm is doing its thing

I'm glad to know there is people like you out there, especially for those who need it. Kudos man. Stay bless and keep blessing.

This is an incredible example of the passion behind the HAM radio operators. Thank you for sharing.

Glad you were able to help. I still have an old CB radio in the truck. You never know i guess.

I heard something like that happen on a local repeater before I got licensed (listening on a scanner)...similar thing no cell service anywhere and someone came onto an accident, was able to relay request for help. And had a former coworker who's car died on a rural road with no shoulders late at night where there's no cell coverage and was able to reach someone on a repeater and relay their information to get help called out.

Nice job. I have the same radio (FTM-400) in my car. It’s nice to see the APRS feature being used in an emergency situation. I am still learning my radio but so far I really like this radio, the digital mode (system fusion) is so clean it’s better then cell phone quality audio! 73🍻

Not all heroes wear capes. Some have ham radio! Talk about being in the right place at the right time! Thank you sir!

This happened to my town a couple times too during hard storms, completely wiped out cellular and landlines so I tuned the local police department repeater on my HT with the offset and did walking loops around my neighborhood incase anyone needed help since there's a lot of old people where I lived. Don't transmit though unless it's an immediate life threatening emergency or someone has been severely injured, thankfully I never had to both times.

Great work! I’ve got the FTM 400 as well, but have not set up the APRS. You e just given me the impetus to do so!

Definitely a king of the comms! Well done 👍

This is very cool! We don't hear much about ham radio operators!!

Always good to have a backup comms for dead spots and larger events. I remember seeing HF stations operating in the Red Cross Operations Center for Hurricane Katrina (Jackson, MS) when I was a volunteer there. I've not been active as a ham for many years now, but still have my Icom handhelds and 756Pro HF rig. I live right next to an airport, so operating HF is challenging at best. Sadly, it seems to be a hobby in a long, slow sunset. The long solar minimums haven't helped either. Please keep up the great advocacy.

Thank you for sharing the story. It brings back fond memories as a kid. I didn’t like the organization. My parents were involved in, but I am very glad for the exposure. It brought me to technology and the important work that they did, and still continue to do. Cell phones are not everything.

I hope to someday get my HAM license. I recall that one of my country's biggest disasters over half a century ago, they relied on amateur radio to relay all the info of the damages, as the impacted regions had no infrastructure to transmit what happened. People found out the scale and detail because of what "amateurs" provided, as nothing was left intact. It's a fun way to communicate and get to chat with fellow enthausiasts, and at the same time it has one of those functionalities that you hope to not use, but when you need it, you glad it's there.

Good job, sir. I know that area of the state, because my family lives down there, and I know how hard it can be to get a good cell signal out there. I've let my license lapse, but I used to be a member of K2AA club out of Cherry Hill. This is a good reminder for me to look into getting my license restored. I live in Northern New England now, where the mountainous terrain means that only an HF NVIS signal is likely to be able to reach help, but then only if someone is actually listening. I don't have a car anymore, but I had my Yaesu FT-100 and my Kenwood TM-D700A with APRS installed in it, when I still had one.

Nicely done! Very lucky for them that you were there.

This is fantastic! I’ve always been interested in amateur radio and ham radio being a railfan. This just proves how useful it still is despite it being considered “outdated”.

World needs more folk like you

Thanks for posting this. Great job.

theres one trick you can do as well if your phone says *no service* that *may* be correct but its technically possible that a 911 call may still work so ALWAYS try it if you can! FCC guidelines make phones basically scream for any tower of the same band as your phone to accept 911 calls so if theres any tower support even outside your carrier it may still work.

Very cool to see. Thanks for posting

Glad you can operate the knobs with those huge paws.

Great work!

God bless! Always fun when the hammy becomes the hero!

I just visited Yellowstone and told my wife if something were to happen on any of these mountain roads. we would be screwed, most of the park has 0 cell service. On our last day we stumbled upon a poor young lady who looked to have slept in her car the night before on one of the many turn outs. She left her park lights on and killed her battery. She wrote a note asking for help in lipstick on the from and back of her car and was bundled up inside freezing. I was so pissed to see that no one that was going her direction stopped to help. We turned around as soon as we were able and helped her get on her way. I'm glad it wasn't anything as serious as the accident you assisted with, but I can only imagine..

Back in early 2000 as a ham radio my self i always found in this situation too. Guess so many time tho. Best regards 73 from 9m2frd west malaysia

i am not licensed but i keep a ham for listening and emergencies, and yes i have called in more than a few emergencies with it and no one has ever said a word, i will never use the radio without a license unless its an emergency though, need to get my Technician class but so far its not been needed.

Once again, a Ham saves the day... Excellent work 👏 👍 👌

I've been dragging my feet on getting a HAM license for 2 years now and things like this is why I feel like I should push to get it done. I live in a part of Ohio as of earlier this year that has zero cell service, but we do have radio and satnav. Can't tell you how many stranded tourists I've had come down my dead-end road trying to get over the ridge (lotta maps still have roads on them that haven't been connected since the 1980s). I had a handheld Baofeng unit I passively listened to local FD on years back, but I have no idea which tote it wound up in after I finished moving. Transmit was disabled from factory anyways as it violated FCC regulations I found out a month after I unboxed it while trying to get it to work with another friend (who is licensed) with his radio when I visited him in Tennessee.

Good work, VK2FRBG best 73s mate

Great work! So glad the responding officer just happen to be a ham

Ham radio are the life lines for us as a firefighter first responder i wish we had more ham radio operators

Nice job! You saved the day… You saved the day!

Good job! That would make a great news story for the local paper.

This is so cool. Also, what a cool HAM you have in your car.

Great job, mate!

Excellent

Nice job!

This is exactly why I have a HAM radio and license. I live on the road full time and there are many places that don't have cell service but I can talk on HAM.

so good to see, that for you ham radio is more than just 5-9 blips.

Huh. Might have to consider one of these at some point. Been thinking about doing camping and exploration and this seems like a great tool to have.

Great work. You're a good Citizen.Time to bring back HAM radio, the cell system grid is faulty by design

Good work buddy

This is finally convinced me to get a ham radio

I’ve always been told that emergency services should work without service anyways.

Wow very cool. Thanks man.

Great job fantastic congratulations 73 from kb2uew

I used to run a cb base station with 1000 watts with a Antron 99 antenna on top of my mountain thru a Ranger 2950. I made many enemy's. Until lighting hit my antenna and blew it all up.

Yep, know your area, and have the right repeaters programmed in and your golden. I too am a Ham Radio operator, since 2016. I specialize, in small mobile units. I even have a set up for my bike. KI7BSL, you have a good day, 73's

good job, nothing dramatic - no high vis wests self important bull - just pragmatic assistance where a need presented itself. 73 OG4U

I remember 30 years ago, using the 2 mtr cactus link from AZ up to the Oregon coast when my rig was disabled in a wash and I couldn’t call home

If they had a new iPhone I wonder if it would've worked here to call 911 over their special satellites

Nicely done... emcomm with a little "e".

I Bet You Felt Like A Hero And YOU ARE ONE !

I had no idea there was a radio location beacon thing on a radio that's interesting.

I had the same radio I loved it

I never really got into HAM but i always had a CB with SSB when i was trucking. Never know when you're going to break down in the middle of a nevada desert with no cell service, nearest highway could be 100 miles away, SSB cuts the carrier and one of the side bands out of the normal CB signal so the full power of your radio goes into carrying your voice. Does nothing to boost incoming signals so you'll never hear a response unless they are also on SSB

Very nice. Glad you could help. A cb radio could have done it too. Can't pin point a location, but could have come in handy. The 111111 guy on channel 38, would have helped you, for sure.

this man was born prepared

Great! Glad you were able to help, but also note new iphones have emergency SOS via satellite and crash detection. That combined with a ham radio and everyone's happy

Awesome job! I've been wondering if anyone still has CBs or HAM radios in cars anymore. Here's my proof.

Awesome hope She okay

I got a ham, thinking I could figure out how to work it. After all I was a FO in the Marine Corps, and used the PRC. Unfortunately it’s beyond my technical capabilities because my new one isn’t analog like the 77 was. Yeah the new one fits in my pocket, but I would happily use the samsonite size radio because it’s a no brainer to use, and you can take it apart and play with it.

Always good to see some Cape May/SNJ Hams

I’m shocked to hear this was in South Jersey, I thought that area had pretty solid coverage between all the carriers. At least enough to make emergency calls.

I remember about 20 years ago you could switch to CB channel 9 and report incidents and would actually get a response.

This is literally the only productive thing ham radio has ever done lol

Good job!

Hey, this is true SHTF communication right here.

Wow God bless you brother. Should I get a ham or cb radio for my car?

There are places in NEW JERSEY without phone coverage? Holy hell... there are some really remote places in Scandinavia, like above the Arctic circle, hours of driving from the nearest...anything and there will be phone service. Wow...

That's why I always have my HAM and CB radio in all my cars. Also, my daily use car has a oem satellite phone. I got my ass saved after my old volvo died on a forest road and I didn't had cellular and satellite connection. I grabbed my CB radio first and I actually found help that way. The guy was super helpful, got his money back + a bit extra money for buying me a new fuel pump and many can argue that a 74$ cb radio is all you need but I invested over 1000$ for each of my HAM radios (icom) for all my cars and it's better to have multiple ways to communicate with someone rather than only have your phone. That way if one thing doesn't work, I can try something different and if that doesn't work, I still have a alternative way to communicate. If all of this doesn't work, I can still grab my chinese ham radio with custom firmware, connect it to the antenna and try to broadcast illegally on public FM radio frequencies. But this is only if all the other methods to reach someone fail. Sure, I risk getting fined because of that but I rather pay a fine than get eaten by the wolves or die some other way.

Sweet setup!