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April 18 2009
World Amateur Radio Day
The Radio Society of Great Britain announces that World Amateur Radio Day on 18 April will celebrate amateur radio’s role in disaster and emergency situations.
Events like the recent bush fires in Australia, the recent blizzards and floods in the UK have demonstrated the vulnerability of today’s infrastructure-dependant communication systems when disaster strikes.
RAYNET is the UK’s amateur radio emergency network. There are approximately 40,000 licensed radio amateurs in the UK many of whom are highly trained operators and involved in RAYNET.
“Telecommunications have become a commodity that society takes for granted, and the sudden loss of that service is often felt in a similar way to the loss of shelter, food and medical support. When disasters occur in regions where the communications infrastructure has been destroyed, Amateur Radio comes to the rescue,” explains Kath Wilson, the North West Regional Manager of the Radio Society of Great Britain.
Amateur Radio operators provide communications for the rescuers and relief workers and their organisations and they help provide communications for those affected by the disaster. Radio Amateurs provided communications after the tsunami in South East Asia in 2005, the 9/11 bombings in the USA and almost everywhere in the world where there has been a natural or man made disaster.
About World Amateur Radio Day
Each year on 18 April, Radio Amateurs across the globe celebrate World Amateur Radio Day with a host of local events. On that day in 1925 the International Amateur Radio Union was founded (IARU). In 2009, the theme of the event is: ‘Amateur Radio: Your Resource in Disaster and Emergency Communication’.
About RAYNET
Members of the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) formed UK RAYNET in 1953, following the severe east coast flooding. The UK has not yet suffered large-scale catastrophes like other parts of the world, but in recent times RAYNET has been called upon to provide help in flooding areas, in case of serious fires and security threats. RAYNET also provides support for a whole host of community events from marathons, charity walks, motoring rallies, fetes and carnivals.