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PART I (ACRONYMS & SPECIAL TERMS)

Does anyone have any particular acronym or term in mind that they have heard and would like to know the meaning of?

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OK . . . . . . Let's start with ADEC/DCRO. Does anyone know what this stands for?

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ADEC/DCRO (Assistant District Emergency Coordinator/Deputy Chief Radio Officer)

The Assistant District Emergency Coordinator and Deputy Chief Radio Officer for the Santa Clara County Operational Area, including Stanford and NASA/Ames.

How about AEC?

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AEC (Assistant Emergency Coordinator)

The Assistant Emergency Coordinator for a jurisdiction within the Santa Clara County Operational Area, including Stanford and NASA/Ames.

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OK, Here's a term that you may not have heard. . . . Allied Agency, which I&146;ll define.

Allied Agency

Any agency, special district or organization, other than public safety agencies, designated by competent authority. Examples include disaster relief agencies such as the American Red Cross and CADRE, essential service providers such as transportation districts or utilities, and hospitals.

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OK, here's a tough one. Can anyone tell me what ARES stands for?

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ARES

The Amateur Radio Emergency Service, part of the Amateur Radio Relay League's field organization, which provides organizational structure and training materials. Public service events such as bike races, parades, and so on are ARES events.

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And of course, ARES/RACES personnel is defined as:

ARES/RACES Personnel

Those amateur radio operators who are known to the city EC/RO and who, in his/her opinion, may reasonably be counted upon to provide auxiliary communications support during RACES activations.

Here’s one that you hear all of the time. What does "Break" mean?

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Break

According to the ARRL Operating Manual, "Break" is the word used to interrupt a conversation on a repeater to indicate that there is an emergency. Keep this in mind the next time you use the word "Break".

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Does anyone know what CADRE stands for?

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CADRE (Community Agency Disaster Relief Effort)

A coordinating body for agencies such as the Salvation Army and Second Harvest Food Bank to which ARES/RACES provides auxiliary communications.

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Here's one that most people probably have not heard of before, CESRS:

CESRS (California Emergency Services Radio System)

The state government radio system that links the Operational Area EOCs with State OES.

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Does anyone know what Command 1 refers to ?

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Command 1

The inter-EOC voice radio net on 2 meters. This net links city EOCs with the Operational Area EOC at County and allied agencies for tactical voice traffic.

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OK, what's Command 2?

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Command 2

The ARES/RACES leadership net on 70 cm. This net links EC/ROs and serves as a travel net for the leadership.

OK, here's a tough one. What's a Competent Authority?

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Competent Authority

A disaster council or its public safety agency command personnel.

How about this one. What's Control 10?

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Control 10

The county local government radio system, which is used by County OES and other agencies.

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OK, I'll take the next one. County ARES/RACES staff:

County ARES/RACES staff

The County-level ARES/RACES leadership consisting of the District Emergency Coordinator/Chief Radio Officer (DEC/CRO); Assistant District Emergency Coordinators/Deputy Chief Radio Officers (ADECs/DCROs) for Operations, Technology, Training, Planning, and Staffing; and other appointed staff. The overall leadership develops County-wide policies and procedures, coordinates training, develops and conducts exercises, represents ARES/RACES to the County Emergency Managers' Association, and coordinates mutual aid.

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Does anyone know what County Comm refers to ?

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"County Comm" (County Communications)

The County's central communications dispatch facility.

Here's another tough one. What's CTCSS?

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CTCSS (Many times referred to as PL)

CTCSS (Continuous Tone-Controlled Squelch System) or PL (Motorola’s trademark term

for Private Line used on commercial gear) is a series of subaudible tones that can be superimposed on a transmitted signal. Repeaters that are CTCSS equipped will respond to the programmed tone and effectively lock out signals that do not carry the correct tone.

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Here's an easy one. What's a DEC/CRO?

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DEC/CRO

The District Emergency Coordinator and Chief Radio Officer for the Santa Clara County Operational Area, including Stanford and NASA/Ames.

Here's the one we talked about earlier . . . Disaster Council. What is it?

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Disaster Council

Usually the elected governing body of a jurisdiction (for example, the Board of Supervisors or City Council).

Here's another easy one. . . . DSW. What is it?

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DSW (Disaster Service Worker)

A volunteer who is registered with a disaster council and who, if activated and employed during an emergency, is covered by workers compensation insurance by the employing government agency. Some cities and the County register DSWs. All responders during RACES activations must be DSWs who are registered in the Communications Class. 

What's DTMF?

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DTMF (Dual Tone Multi-Frequency)

The series of tones generated from a keypad on a ham radio transceiver (or a regular telephone). In many cases, DTMF tones are required to access special features on a repeater such as the Autopatch.

How about Duty Officer?

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DUTY OFFICER

The member of the County ARES/RACES Staff who is on duty during RACES activations. Duty Officers serve 24-hour shifts and carry Control-10 pagers and radios to allow them to be away from the Operational Area EOC during their shifts. Duty Officers and Staff members use the tactical call signs OES-10 through OES-18.

How about EBBS?

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EBBS (Emergency Bulletin Board System)

A stand-alone packet BBS that provides inter-EOC data communications.

OK, How about ECC?

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ECC (Emergency Communications Center)

A facility whose primary function is emergency communications management. In Santa Clara County, the ARES/RACES ECC is located at the Santa Clara Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross.

Here's an easy one. What's an EC?

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EC (Emergency Coordinator)

An ARES leadership title. There is a Section EC for the five-county Section, District ECs in each County, Assistant DECs to aid the DECs, ECs in each city, and Assistant ECs to aid the ECs. In Santa Clara County, ECs have parallel appointments to the RACES function and use the combined name ARES/RACES.

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And to go along with that, we have an EC/RO, which is:

EC/RO

The Emergency Coordinator and Radio Officer for a jurisdiction within the Santa Clara County Operational Area including Stanford and NASA/Ames.

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Has anyone ever heard of EDIS?

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EDIS (Emergency Digital Information System)

The state government broadcast packet system by which jurisdictions and agencies can send press releases and advisories to the media.

How about EMA?

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EMA (Emergency Manager's Association)

A committee whose membership consists of the managers of all city Offices of Emergency Services in the County, the manager of the County Office of Emergency Services, and the Emergency Managers of ARES/RACES as represented to the EMA by the District Emergency Coordinator/Chief Radio Officer.

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I'll take the next one. It's Emergency Services Coordinator:

Emergency Services Coordinator

The government employee in each jurisdiction who manages the ARES/RACES program including Stanford but not NASA/Ames.

Here's another easy one. what's an EOC?

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EOC (Emergency Operations Center)

A facility operated by each city, county, state and some disaster response agencies to house its emergency management coordination function. The Operational Area EOC, sometimes called the County EOC, is located at the Sheriff's Office in San Jose.

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 Along with that is the EOC-to-EOC radio system:

EOC-to-EOC radio system

The local government radio system, which links city EOCs with the Operational Area EOC. ARES/RACES responders may be asked to operate this and other government radio systems.

OK, THIS CONCLUDES PART I OF ACRONYMS & SPECIAL TERMS. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS OR ANY TERMS THAT ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE DEFINED?

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PART II (ACRONYMS & SPECIAL TERMS)

Before we begin, I'd like to give credit to Anne Barrett, KC6PFS, who is also our DEC/CRO for compiling this list of acronyms and terms that we as amateurs use on a daily basis. I've added a few of my own that I keep hearing and I invite any other additions that anyone else might have. The full text appears in the Policies and Procedures section of the County Web page at http://www.onlinevillage.com/xsc-ec/index.htm.

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What's the Expanded Response Procedure?

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Expanded Response Procedure

A procedure for use within Santa Clara County by which city EC/ROs can request RACES mutual aid without further government-to-government communication. The procedure includes a worksheet by which the EC/RO can estimate his/her auxiliary communication needs and compare them to available resources. The reverse of the worksheet contains a request form to be signed by the Incident Commander (or his/her designee) and procedures for contacting the County ARES/RACES staff to obtain additional RACES resources.

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Here's an easy one. What's ICS?

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ICS (Incident Command System)

A standardized organizational structure for managing emergency events which can be scaled to meet incident requirements. There is a single Incident Commander (IC) and up to four branches (Operations, Logistics, Planning and Finance). ARES/RACES reports to the Logistics Branch. Incident names take the form of "Vasona Command" or "Vasona IC."

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Here's one that you'll hear pretty regularly . . . . Intermod. But what is it?

Intermod (Intermodulation Distortion)

The unwanted mixing of two strong RF signals that causes a third signal to be transmitted on an unintended frequency.

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What's IRT stand for?

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IRT (Initial Response Team)

The County ARES/RACES Staff and certain other ARES/RACES members, authorized by their home city Emergency Coordinator/Radio Officers, who will staff designated county communications facilities (the Operational Area EOC, the ARES/RACES ECC at Red Cross, County Communications and the Resource Net) immediately following any of a number of events described in the County RACES Plan and the IRT Handbook.

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Here's a tough one? What's OARDS?

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OARDS (Operational Area Resource Data System)

The planned County-wide broadcast packet system by which jurisdictions can list their

resource needs during emergencies.

How about OASIS?

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OASIS (Operational Area Satellite Information System)

The state government satellite communication system which links Operational Area EOCs with the State OES.

Here’s another easy one. What’s an OES?

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OES (Office of Emergency Services)

The name often given to a jurisdiction's emergency preparedness agency. Cities, the County, and allied agencies all have OESs. County OES sponsors ARES/RACES at the County level.

Here's one you hear often. . . . . Offset Frequency. What does it mean?

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Offset Frequency

When communicating through a repeater, the transmit frequency is shifted from the receive frequency by an amount determined by the offset frequency. This is typically +/- 600khz on 2 meters and +/- 5 MHz on 70cm.

How about Operational Area?

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Operational Area

A State OES definition of the entire county, including the unincorporated county land together with all the cities.

How about Packet Data Net?

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Packet Data Net

The inter-EOC digital net, which operates on the Emergency Bulletin Board System on 2-meters and 220 Mhz. This net links city EOCs with the Operational Area EOC and allied agencies for damage assessment and logistic traffic.

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We talked about this before, but what is PL?

PL (CTCSS Sub-audible tone)

Motorola’s trademark term for Private Line used on commercial gear. Some repeaters require sub-audible tones to be accessed. Sub-audible tones are superimposed over your normal signal and must be set in advance. For example, WB6ADZ uses a sub-audible tone (or PL) of 100hz from time to time to improve reception.

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What's does Plain Text Mean?

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Plain text

The policy of using plain English for radio communications, with no 10-codes or Q-codes (for example, using the word "Copy" instead of 10-4 or QSL). Tactical amateur radio transmissions should be in plain text.

Here's an easy one. What's RACES?

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RACES

The Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service, a unit of state and local government, is an auxiliary communications function for emergency preparedness and disaster response. RACES requires activation by competent authority and provides workers compensation insurance to responders during activations. In Santa Clara County, ARES provides the RACES function and uses the combined name ARES/RACES.

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And along with that is RACES operators. . . . .

RACES operators

Individuals licensed by the FCC in the Amateur Radio Service who are registered as Disaster Service Workers (DSW) in the Communications Class and who serve in RACES during an activation.

What's a RACES Plan?

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RACES Plan

The document which authorizes the RACES function in a jurisdiction, usually prepared in a State recommended format.

How about Resource Net?

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Resource net

The 2-meter net that is used for ARES/RACES activation and resource management, including responder recruiting and dispatching.

And along with that is a Resource Net Control Operator, which is . . . .

Resource Net Control Operator

The responder to whom authority is delegated to recruit and assign ARES/RACES personnel via the Resource Net.

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What's an RO?

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RO (Radio Officer)

A RACES leadership title. The County ARES/RACES Staff consists of a Chief RO, and three Deputy Chief ROs for Operations, Technology, and Training. Each city has its own RO. In Santa Clara County, the Chief RO is the District EC, the Deputy Chief ROs are the Assistant DECs, and the city ROs are the city ECs.

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I'll take the next one. . . . . Santa Clara Coutny ARES/RACES:

Santa Clara County ARES/RACES

The collective term that includes the County ARES/ RACES Staff, the fourteen city ARES/RACES groups, Stanford ARES/RACES and those County ARES/ RACES members at NASA/Ames.

What's an SEC?

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SEC (Section Emergency Coordinator)

The Section Emergency Coordinator primarily makes policies and plans and establishes goals. He/She selects the DEC and promotes ARES membership as well as keeping tabs on emergency preparedness.

OK, What is SEMS?

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SEMS (Standardized Emergency Management System)

The SEMS law, effective January 1, 1993, incorporated the use of the Incident Command System (ICS); the Fire Fighting Resources of California Organized for Potential Emergencies (FIRESCOPE) agreement; existing multi-agency and interagency programs; the State's master Mutual Aid agreement and mutual aid program; the Operational Area concept; and the Operational Area Satellite Information System (OASIS) into a single program.

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There are several modules of information about SEMS, with later modules building on the information provided in earlier modules. As of December 1, 1996, personnel in all city, County, and State OESs, and in the allied agencies that interact with such government entities (as does RACES), must have the minimum basic understanding of SEMS conveyed in the SEMS Student Reference Manual for Module I. This module is contained on the County Web Page at the URL I mentioned earlier.

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Here's an easy one. What's a Shadow?

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Shadow

A responder assigned to a particular public safety officer or organization VIP to provide them with auxiliary communications.

How about a Shift Supervisor?

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Shift Supervisor

The ARES/RACES responder who has responsibility for overall net management. Shift Supervisors serve 6-hour shifts at the Operational Area EOC or the ECC. The Shift Supervisor always uses the tactical call sign OES-19.

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Here's another easy one. What's SPECS?

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SPECS (Southern Peninsula Emergency Communications System)

The ARES organization composed of Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Stanford, and Sunnyvale.

What's SVECS?

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SVECS (Silicon Valley Emergency Communications System)

The ARES organization composed of NASA/AMES, Campbell, Cupertino, Los Gatos, Milpitas, San Jose, Santa Clara, Saratoga, Sunnyvale, and South County (Morgan Hill, Gilroy, and San Martin).

And last, but not least. . . . .What is a Tactical callsign?

Tactical callsign

An identifier used by all radio operators at a specific location. They may include jurisdiction names ("Santa Clara County"), agency names ("Palo Alto Red Cross"), location names ("Milepost 7"), ICS names ("Vasona Command"), individual names ("EMS Shadow"), or net names ("Resource"). All tactical communications are made using tactical call signs. Use amateur call signs and identify FCC requirements (that is, every ten minutes or at the end of a series of transmissions.

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THIS CONCLUDES THE SECOND AND FINAL PART OF ACRONYMS & OTHER SPECIAL TERMS. ARE THERE ANY ACRONYMS OR TERMS THAT I DID NOT MENTION THAT ANYONE WOULD LIKE DEFINED?

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