Ham radio operators to show crisis abilities

AUSTINTOWN

The 20/9 Amateur Radio Operators club will join thousands of other amateur operators across the country in showing their emergency capabilities this weekend in a 24-hour demonstration at Pogany Pavilion in Austintown Township Park.

Special events for the public are planned for 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday. Club members will be available from 2 p.m. Saturday to 2 p.m. Sunday to talk to visitors.

The annual demonstration is called Field Day, the climax of Amateur Radio Week, June 16 through 23, sponsored by the ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio.

Disasters sometimes leave victims and rescuers without a way to communicate. One service that has never failed is amateur radio. The operators, often called “hams,” have provided backup communications in such emergencies as the Midwest tornadoes and the bombing in Boston, among other events worldwide.

The club invites the public to learn how to get their own FCC radio licenses before the next disaster.

For more information visit www.20over9.org or email K8TKAnews@hotmail.com.