I'm an amateur radio operator. I have two radios mounted in my car, and one at home. The car radios are readily available for emergency use with no extra work. The home radio station needed enhancement. Power is the major need. I have created a new power supply setup for my home station by tying together three large deep cycle 12 volt batteries, and feeding them with a trickle charger that has an automatic shutoff. This allows me to transmit at will for days or weeks off battery power alone, while using minimal amperage to handle the charging. The theoretical limits of this battery power would allow me to transmit full time, without ever letting off of the talk button, for approximately three days. That's not bad. In addition, I'm finishing a cable for the power station that will allow me to quickly decouple the 2 meter/440mhz radio from the car and move it to the house, so my home station will be more usable.

I've been finishing up a couple of inexpensive portable directional antennas for 2 meters that will expand the distance my signal can reach. These antennas are great emergency use antennas, since they're lightweight, easily dismantled and setup, very portable, and quite effective. The "secondary" use I have in mind for them (emergency use is ALWAYS the primary use) is to allow me to quickly setup a mobile/remote stationary position on a hilltop to attempt more long distance contacts. The total cost for the two antennas and spare parts is less than $30.

Additional power needs will be met through additional supplies. We've been slowly building a collection of AA and AAA rechargable NiMH batteries for our various devices. Most of our FRS radios are already equipped with rechargable batteries, as is my Grundig AM/FM/Shortwave pocket radio, both 2 meter handhelds, my son's gameboy, digital cameras and a couple other devices. On top of those, I have 15 more batteries charged and ready within sight, and there are at least a half-dozen more that I know of at home. These will ALL be fully charged by storm time. We have an additional deep-cycle battery which can feed an AC inverter that I carry in my car, to provide AC power to a small TV, radio, lights or the like for quite some time. Recharging can be done using the car.

Water is a big necessity. I've been in the habit for quite some time of occasionally cleaning a milk jug and filling it with water, then placing it in the basement. We have several gallons of clean water for washing, and after a boil on the gas stove, other uses. We'll stock up on bottled water today, as well, for drinking. The gallon jug trick is good for other situations, as well. When the city turns the water off for maintenance, and you wake up with no shower, there's water around so you can stay clean. That's always nice.

I mentioned the FRS radios. These are great when the phones die. Several of my neighbors have them as well, and they can help with communications in situations like this.

Now for what i consider extras. There should be grilling capacity. When the power goes out, refrigerators stop working. Freezers full of meat need to be eaten, so it's time for neighborhood cook-outs. He who has a grill hosts the cookouts. Everyone brings something that's thawing, and everybody eats very well. Cots are nice, so you can host friends who might not be setup as comfortably as you. Folding chairs, acoustic instruments, books, lawn games are all good.

Oh yeah. Knives are good. I carry a pocketknife at all times. We have additional knives for utility purposes, a machete, cooking knives, etc. Sharp knives are good, and dull knives are dangerous, so keep them sharp. Using the wrong knive for the job is unsafe, as well, so think before you cut.

Plan ahead, and emergency situations don't have to be all that bad. Plan well enough, and days-long power outages can actually be fun. Instead of sitting inside watching TV, playing on the computer and generally being antisocial misfits, we can be outside having fun with the neighbors. How cool is that?

A side note. Being an amateur radio operator, I have access to some weather tools that the general public may not be aware of. Amateur radio ops, emergency workers and others can become a part of a system called SkyWarn. Skywarn is a system through which individuals can advise the National Weather Service of localized conditions through direct observation. When you watch the news and the weatherguy says that quarter-sized hail has been observed in a particular area, it is usually because a SkyWarn observer has passed this information on. When major weather is in the area, I can listen to an area repeater and get this information as it is being reported by the observer.

On the Internet, I can listen in on weather nets using a special VOIP software for hams known as EchoLink. As Hurricane Charlie bears down on Florida's West Coast, I'm listening to the WX_TALK conference, which includes both Internet-based nodes and on-air radio transmissions concerning this storm. As the storm reaches the local area, I can listen to the 146.88- repeater from near Raleigh either through my radio or over the area on this link. Non-hams in the NC area can listen in on this one for up-to-date info during a major storm.

Lockjaw - Out!