Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service
Hours
8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Monday – Friday
except state-observed holidays
Indiana Dept. of Homeland Security
Indiana Government Center-South, Room E208
302 W. Washington St.
Indianapolis, IN 46204-2739
Email IDHS Communications Director Lewis Hartman: lhartman@dhs.in.gov
Amateur Radio Emergency Services Interest Form
IDHS is updating its roster of amateur radio volunteers that may be available across Indiana during emergency operations. Additionally, the IDHS RACES team is looking to add members, primarily in the Central Indiana area. Interested amateur radio operators should fill out the interest form below.
Submit your interestAbout Amateur Radio and RACES
U.S. amateur radio operators are volunteers, licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), who communicate through allocated radio frequencies. In Indiana, there are more than 16,000 amateur operators with active licenses. Many amateur radio operators, often called hams, assist public safety agencies using their skills and personal radio equipment to back up or supplement communications. Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES) is a status granted to licensed hams who are also certified volunteers registered with an emergency management agency.
The Indiana Department of Homeland Security (IDHS) has sites that support a RACES team with radio equipment used during activations, and the IDHS communications director is responsible for the maintenance and training of this pool of volunteers. The team is called upon during emergencies or with reasonable expectation of potential emergencies requiring IDHS State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) support. The RACES team members support the SEOC not only with communications via amateur radio, but also with any legal form of communications on which they are trained and qualified. For example, they might use Public Safety Land/Mobile Radio (LMR), satellite radio/phone/data or Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) terminals.
Learn more about Indiana's amateur radio volunteers
Activation Levels
There are four levels of activation for the IDHS RACES team. The levels are not linked to the SEOC activation levels.
| Activation Level | Description |
|---|---|
| Level IV – Standby | Members are notified of the potential for activation and are expected to maintain awareness of the situation via WebEOC. |
| Level III – Home Operation | Members are activated, but are not to report to the SEOC. Possible situations are:
|
| Level II – Activation | Members are requested to staff the station(s) located in the SEOC, logistics facility or at home, as directed, full-time or part-time. |
| Level I – Deployment | Members are requested to assist with communications at locations other than their home stations or the SEOC. Deployment requires activation of a mobile support unit listing the names of the RACES team members deployed (see Annex for required/recommended equipment during deployments). |
- Level IV – Standby: Members are notified of the potential for activation and are expected to maintain awareness of the situation via WebEOC.
- Level III – Home Operation: Members are activated, but are not to report to the SEOC. Possible situations are:
- To provide “situational awareness” during severe weather or other events
- To provide maximum communications capability with other amateurs
- To provide communications when working from the SEOC may not be possible, or desired (e.g., pandemic, damage to the SEOC or relocation of the SEOC)
- Level II – Activation: Members are requested to staff the station(s) located in the SEOC, logistics facility or at home, as directed, full-time or part-time.
- Level I – Deployment: Members are requested to assist with communications at locations other than their home stations or the SEOC. Deployment requires activation of a mobile support unit listing the names of the RACES team members deployed (see Annex for required/recommended equipment during deployments).
Activation Authority
Levels IV, III and II may be done by the IDHS communications director, SEOC manager or response director. Level I requires activation of a mobile support unit, which may be authorized by the governor or the IDHS executive director, by request (Indiana Code 10-14-3-19).
Frequencies
After activation, the IDHS RACES team will monitor 3.920 MHz LSB and 7.290 MHz LSB. Both frequencies are +/- QRM. Depending on the nature of the emergency, the following frequencies and systems may be monitored as well:
| Type | Call Sign | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Primary | K9IPL Repeater | 146.670 MHz 88.5 Tone |
| Secondary | W9RCA Repeater | 146.880 MHz 88.5 Tone |
| Primary | Simplex Repeater | 146.490 MHz |
| Primary | K9XV Repeater | 224.800 MHz 88.5 Tone |
| Secondary | W9ICE Repeater | 224.980 MHz 77.0 Tone |
| Primary | KC9GMJ Repeater | 443.100+ MHz 100.0 Tone |
| Secondary | KB9SGN Repeater | 444.325 MHz 136.5 Tone |