During operation Coastal Response the Salvation Army worked hard to provide folks with meals, snacks and coffee.  In addition an amateur station was established at this location. All part of a communication network. The vehicles come in all shapes and sizes, but they are a critical part of the response.

Amateur Radio established a station outside the main reception centre to aid in communication. When a secondary reception centre was established anoher amateur station set up with a portable kit.

The mass casualty centre was established. At this site was a portable medical centre, an amateur radio station and a coroner’s disaster team

The mobile hospital is a legacy from the Olympics in Whistler. It can handle 14 beds, has an operating theatre that can be converted into an isolation room.

The amateur station handled communication for this location. In addition behind the amateur station was a field suitable to helicopters to land.

The coroners truck doesn’t need any explanation !

Outside these photos is  large building that was adapted for casualties.

During the Coastal Response Exercise amateur radio set up several stations in the Port Alberni. One of these stations was outside the Emergency Operations Centre in downtown Port Alberni . Here amateurs manned vhf,uhf, digital vhf and hf as well as satellite connections. This station was established outside the front door of the EOC so the runners earned their keep !

During Exercise Coastal Response many organizations responded. Over the next few days I will go through some of these agencies.  First off the mark is the BC Ambulance Service. There communication vehicles can speak to any police department in the province, they can make contacts on any ham band,  they can use satellite phones,and they can dispatch ambulances . An interesting vehicle

The largest simulated emergency test in the history of the Province is over. Now comes the dissecting of what happened. As with any exercise there will be pluses and minuses.

I do not have the actual number of amateur operators who were in Port Alberni working but my guess is in the order of 50. This does not include those operators on the west coast and other areas of the Province.

The local media is reporting over 600 volunteers were involved in the event. Personally I think this number is low.

It was interesting to here the comments and see some of the actions of those in charge when their cell phone, computer and sat phone “didn’t work.”

To the radio operators that participated, whether in Port Alberni or elsewhere thank you.

There is little doubt there is a long way to go in this process. This was a first step and from little I saw it was well done on the radio side.  There will be the after action reports coming out in the next while and from these we will learn more.  Better to learn now, then during an event.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the event.

Current plans have the BC Boaters Net start on June 10 2016 at 1700 hrs local.  This net operates on the Island Trunk System.  I have included a link to the trunk showing repeaters and their frequencies. All repeaters are linked so use the repeater nearest your location. This system covers the northern portion of the San Juan Islands in Washington state, to the northern tip of Vancouver Island.  In addition certain locations along the west coast of the island are available on the system. This is a link system so please remember .. key your mike, count to yourself  1,2,3. Failure to do this will cut off the first few words or your call sign as the repeaters need time to link.  Have fun and enjoy the system.

http://www.ve7na.ca/cms/system/files/ITS%2031%20Mar%202016.pdf

http://www.islandtrunksystem.org/cms/node/1

http://www.bcbn.ca/

The following information regarding use of the Island Trunk System is reprinted here for your information

EVERY ATTEMPT WILL BE MADE NOT TO INTERFERE WITH REGULARLY SCHEDULED NETS

Exercise Coastal Response 2016