Radio amateurs to remember Sept. 11, 2001

New York City Amateur Radio Emergency Service/Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service members will observe the first anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks that destroyed the New York World Trade Center by activating to assist with the remembrance activities. NYC ARES/RACES will provide communications support to various agencies during commemorative services and events. In addition, American Radio Relay League President Jim Haynie, W5JBP, has been invited to address a global repeater linkup the evening of Sept. 11. And, special event stations are set to be on the air from New York and Washington to commemorate the occasion.

Some 30 NYC ARES/RACES members will be deployed across the New York area to support the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army, the New York City Office of Emergency Management and other agencies. One year ago, ARES teams—most of them from New York City, Long Island and New Jersey—supported the same agencies during the response to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center.

ARRL New York City District Emergency Coordinator and RACES Officer Charles Hargrove, N2NOV, expressed heartfelt thanks to all amateurs coming to NYC to help. “With the chance to train and practice made even more available to the average ham these days, please join your local ARES group and put into practice what you learn,” he said. “Your community will thank you for it when the need truly arises.”

The NYC ARES/RACES activation on the first anniversary of the terrorist attacks will honor the memories of the amateurs who lost their lives in the collapse of the World Trade Center’s twin towers and the other victims.

Haynie is scheduled to address a massive repeater linkup that hopes to span the globe. “I plan to thank all the hams who spent thousands of hours volunteering their time on September 11,” Haynie said. “They again demonstrated the power of Amateur Radio in times of need.” Haynie also said he wants to again acknowledge the hundreds of supportive messages from International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) member-societies that arrived in the wake of the attacks.

Len Signoretti, N2LEN, of Brooklyn, N.Y., is spearheading the effort, called the Commemorative 9/11 Net. N2LEN’s 440.050 MHz (CTCSS 114.8 Hz) Internet-linked repeater covers the New York City area. The linkup will rely on either EchoLink or eQSO Internet software connections. Signoretti said his UHF machine is used as a central hub to coordinate EchoLink and eQSO, so users on each can communicate. The net will attempt to interconnect repeaters in all 50 US states as well as in many other countries around the world.

The Commemorative 9/11 Net is scheduled to get under way at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (0000z Sept. 12) on EchoLink and eQSO servers and could run as long as two hours. Haynie is scheduled to address the cyberspace and RF-linked gathering at around 9 p.m. Eastern Time.

John Nistico, NY6DX, has announced plans to operate special event station W2002WTC starting at 0000z Sept. 1. To comply with FCC rules, he will append “W2002WTC” to his legally assigned call sign. QSL requests go to NY6DX.

Deanna Lutz, K7DID, reports that special event station K4P will operate from the Pentagon and other Washington-area sites Sept. 11 and 12. QSL with an SASE to K7DID, P.O. Box 70071, Washington, DC 20024.

(American Radio Relay League Bulletin)