Command Vehicle Training

There will be a Command Vehicle training session in Marysville Friday, October 15, 2010 9:00 AM-12:00 PM. This is a level 2 training and will count toward the Command Vehicle qualification on your new ACS badge. To register contact Stephen Hagberg at Stephen.Hagberg@snoco.org.

ACES Training Comes to Snohomish County

Download the training flyer here

Creating a comprehensive training program is a daunting task for any emcomm group and nearly impossible for a small team. A group from Oregon identified a set of skills that are required of all operators regardless of served agency and created a training package. The goal of this training and certification is to be able to “resource type” radio operators as is done with other resources under ICS. This allows consistent training efficient use of operators in mutual aid situations because it can be known in advance what level of training incoming operators have achieved and where they can be used appropriately.

What is ACES?

ACES stands for Auxiliary Communications Emergency Solutions and has a mission of supporting our emergency communications partners by promoting a standard for training, certification, and accreditation of operators. The focus is on amateur radio as used in an auxiliary capacity (as required by FCC rules) but includes discussion of other communications systems used by served agencies. More information about the program can be found in the FAQ at http://www.oregonaces.org/content/faq.

When is the course?

The ACES basic level training will be taught October 29-31, 2010 in Everett, WA for the first time in Washington State hosted by the Everett and Snohomish County ACS teams. We are excited that two of the course developers will be coming from Oregon to teach this first session as a train-the-trainer opportunity for Washington teams. The course consists of 16 hours of classroom training and 8 hours of practical hands-on demonstration and starts at 9:00am each day. A complete outline for the course can be found at http://www.oregonaces.org/content/basic-certification.

Who should attend?

We would like to encourage as many as possible to attend. Given finite space, we need to prioritize our active local team members (from any agency in Snohomish County), trainers or course evaluators from other Western Washington jurisdictions and finally active members from other jurisdictions. The training will be offered again early next year and expect to expand the offerings to other groups, much the way the ICS classes are taught. Attendees who would like to be trainers for this material in the future will also have a small train-the-trainer orientation at the conclusion of the course.

How do I sign up?

To register contact Kenda Machorro at Snohomish County DEM is via phone at 425-388-5064 or email at Kenda.Machorro@snoco.org. The course fee is $25 taken at the door. You will receive a binder with the course materials and a certificate upon successful completion of the course. Coffee and snacks will be provided each day and lunch will be available in the cafeteria but is not included.

D-Star Workshop

From Steve Hatch of Federal Way ARC - Just a reminder to register for the D-STAR workshop, Saturday November 20th. Our Keynote speaker will be John Davis WB4QDX from Atlanta. John, worked with Mark Fehlig WA6NGG, the former Director of Engineering for PBS, to use $165,000 to purchase and install D-STAR equipment (2 meter, 70 cm and 1.2 GHz) including antennas and lines on all 9 TV towers in the state of Georgia. These systems cover most of the state of Georgia! John also serves as Net Control for the 5 state South East Weather Net, and is one of the founders of http://dstarinfo.com. Don't miss this special opportunity to learn first hand how emergency communicators who live with hurricanes every year capitalize on the power of D-STAR!

ICS-300/400 Class

We are still looking for an ICS-300/400 class for local operators. Snohomish DEM hosts a fantastic class with an excellent instructor. When it comes back around, we will be sure to forward that information.

The State Training Calendar and Red Cross Training

In the interest of giving you tools to help you advance and learn about Red Cross, we have recently learned about the State Training Calendar. All Training Leads around the state have been given access to update the calendar. They are encouraged to post any Disaster Services classes which are open to all chapters on the calendar. We have a good training function at Snohomish County and offer a wide variety of classes but there could occasionally be classes offered at another Chapter which could be more convenient for you.

The link to the State Training Calendar is: http://esvolunteers.org/training/training_calendar.htm.

The best way to view the calendar is in "agenda" mode. See the tabs in the upper right hand corner of the calendar. The entries are color coded for each chapter and are supposed to have a "chapter code" in the beginning of each entry. The key to the color and chapter codes is on the "down" triangle button next to the Agenda tab. Click it and the list of calendars which make up the State calendar will be displayed. Because of a recent change in the procedures the Training leads use to update the calendar the Chapter code will be the most useful indication of where the class will be held. Click any entry to expand it to get more information. Click again to shrink it.

If you see a class you are interested in taking, coordinate your request through the Training activity at our Chapter. Send an email with the classdetails to mailto:training2@snohomishcounty.redcross.org or call 425-740-2331 and leave a message. Liz and Steve will make sure you get enrolled in the class.