Radio Amateurs of Canada is receiving $545,000 to recruit and retain volunteers, upgrade skills and prepare teams for deployment within Ontario. These efforts will ensure a sustainable volunteer workforce is prepared with necessary skills for emergency telecommunications.

The above is a press release from RAC and the funds will come from the Province of Ontario

The full release is below

Toronto, Ontario – July 23, 2025

Radio Amateurs of Canada is proud to announce the development of the Auxiliary Communications Service in Ontario, alongside a comprehensive new recruitment and retention plan. This initiative is part of the Ontario government’s $10 million investment in emergency preparedness grants, aimed at enhancing the response capabilities of Ontario Corps partners across the province.

Under the leadership of Premier Ford and the Ministry of Emergency Preparedness and Response, Radio Amateurs of Canada is receiving $545,000 to recruit and retain volunteers, upgrade skills, and prepare teams for deployment within Ontario. These efforts will ensure a sustainable volunteer workforce equipped with the necessary skills for emergency telecommunications.

The Auxiliary Communications Service will play a crucial role in providing reliable communication during emergencies, leveraging the expertise of skilled professionals and highly trained volunteers. This service will be instrumental in supporting local emergency responders and ensuring communities are better prepared to respond to local emergencies.

“We are honoured to stand with our Ontario NGO partners and the Ministry of Emergency Preparedness and Response in this vital initiative.”

Radio Amateurs of Canada is part of a province-wide network of skilled professionals and highly trained volunteers who can be mobilized quickly to help communities hit hard by emergencies. Items that partners have already purchased using grants include emergency food kits, GPS devices, satellite phones, canteen trucks, portable shelters, training for volunteer drone pilots, and more.

During the ice storm that left thousands of Ontarians in the dark and cold earlier this year, Ontario Corps partners were deployed, volunteering over 6,000 hours. They provided tree-clearing services, supported evacuation reception centers, and delivered over 3,700 meals and food hampers, as well as conducted over 4,100 wellness checks.

Radio Amateurs of Canada is committed to enhancing emergency readiness and response capacity, ensuring that communities across Ontario are better prepared to face any challenges that may arise. We look forward to working closely with our partners and the Ministry of Emergency Preparedness and Response to achieve these goals.

From the ARRL Newsletter- July 2025

Amateur radio operators, including volunteers serving in the ARRL® Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES®) were active in monitoring the potential impacts of tsunami waves following an earthquake off the Russian coast on July 29, 2025. The quake registered 8.8 on the Richter scale, and prompted tsunami concerns and warnings around the Pacific rim.

ARRL Pacific Section Manager Alan Maenchen, AD6E, lives in Wailuku, Hawaii. He was monitoring ham radio communications across the state. “There was some minor flooding in a few areas. It could have been worse. Some of the early waves were measured at 4.5 feet. Waves continue this morning but at a much lower level and difficult to notice by the naked eye,” he reported.

The well-networked ham radio operators in Hawaii quickly sprang into action following the alerts. Informal VHF nets were held on amateur radio repeaters. “Rick (Ward), WH6FC, held an informational statewide HF net on 7090 kHz LSB for many hours and there were about 57 check-ins,” said Maenchen.

On the US mainland, radio amateurs were also on alert. “The Oregon coast teams appear to have been in informal monitoring mode so that they are readily available for activation if needed,” said Bonnie Altus, AB7ZQ, who serves as the Section Emergency Coordinator of the ARRL Oregon Section.

The California Rescue Net on 40 meters was activated. According to Bob Turner, W6RHK, Section Manager of the ARRL Orange Section, “The net received some preparation reports from the San Francisco Bay area and Santa Cruz along with some maritime mobile stations with routine traffic. Orange County RACES checked into the net to inquire about tsunami traffic.”

Ham radio operators are trained for situations like this. In March, operators in the ARRL Los Angeles Section participated in a Tsunami exercise, simulating their response following large earthquakes with magnitudes 6 through 9 that appeared over several hours – much like this real world instance. Across the Caribbean, ARRL volunteers took part in the Caribe Wave 2025 drill the same month.

As mainstream media was covering the earthquake and potential tsunami, Nexstar Media, the largest ownership group of television stations in the United States, published an article across its stations’ websites with 10 tips for evacuating during a tsunami. Number 6 on the list was to “Bring a portable radio or ham radio, also known as an amateur radio. Do not count on phones or the internet to work. Stay tuned until the threat is over.”

The tsunami impact to North America was minimal at worst, and alerts were canceled by midday on July 30. Photographs from Russia show widespread devastation from the earthquake.

The 40-meter amateur radio band is a popular choice for regional emergency communications nets due to the ability to use near vertical incidence skywave (NVIS) propagation, in which the radio waves go nearly straight up and are reflected over a limited area by the ionosphere. Many hams involved in emergency communications use NVIS antennas in their home setups.

The Radio Amateurs of Canada Hall of Fame is accepting applications for this year until Sept 30. Please note you must have the nominees approval prior to submitting the application

For more information go to

Canadian Amateur Radio Hall of Fame

Emergency Management Climate Readiness of BC along with other amateurs including Coast Emergency Communications Association (CECA) members were active after a Tsunami watch was issued on July 29 2025. VHF/UHF & HF frequencies along with Winlink were monitored for several hours.  Nets were stood down around 2300 hrs when it was determined there would be minimal impact on the BC Coast.

The 2025 AGM for RAC will be held on Saturday Sept 6 2025 at 1300 hrs EDT.  The meeting will be held in conjunction with the Ottawa Amateur Radio Club Hamfest.  At this meeting  decisions will be made with respect to the RAC Constitution.

2240 HRS Local  EMCR has stood down. All CECA members have been stood down.   Thanks to all those who participated in this event

THIS WATCH HAS BEEN CANCELED.

OUR AREA OF RESPONSIBILTY IS NOW UNDER A TSUNAMI WATCH.

MORE INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND AT

B.C. under tsunami evaluation after 8.7M earthquake off coast of Russia

Congratulations and thank you  to all the members of the Nanaimo Amateur Radio Association and the Coast Emergency Communications  Association for their work prior to and during the 58th annual running of the Nanaimo Bathtub Race.  Members provided safety and emergency communications from multiple locations around the 58 kilometer race course.  Congratulations too to Trevor Short, the winner of this years race.  More information on the race may be found at

Back-to-back champ: Trevor Short reclaims Nanaimo bathtub race supremacy

From the ARRL Letter

Helen Froom, VE7HEF, was an active member of CECA in the early days of the organization. News of her passing earlier this year has been announced. Condolences to her family and friends. Helen’s contribution to CECA and the community was very much appreciated.

In July 2025, the Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC) announced that the number of Sections will increase by 1 from Jul 01st 2025, to include YUK. The old Territories (TER) section has been divided into two parts. Radio amateurs in the Yukon Territory (province abbreviation: YT) are now located in the YUK section, whilst Radio Amateurs in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut continue to be located in the Territories (TER) section. The change was made at the request of Radio Amateurs in Yukon who volunteered to organise a distinct section for that territory. It was announced in RAC’s journal, The Canadian Amateur (TCA), for July/August 2025.

These ARRL and RAC Section maps are for use in ‘Sweepstakes’ and other Amateur Radio contests.

Note: The maps on this page are valid from Jul 1st 2025. To see the previous maps and Section definitions, please visit the ARRL and RAC Section Maps (2023-2025) page, and before that, the ARRL and RAC Section Maps (2020-2022) page, and before that, the ARRL and RAC Section Maps (2019) page.

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