SARES - Sunnyvale Amateur Radio Emergency Service
News
(07/01/2009) The City of Sunnyvale Summer 2009 Quarterly Report [PDF] on page 7 honors SARES amateur radio operators who helped out at the April 2009 fiber optic cut that left large parts in the south of Santa Clara County without telecommunications and only limited 9-1-1 service during the day.
Amateur Radio Saves the Day
In the early morning of April 9, vandals damaged part of the critical fiber-optic backbone for Southern Santa Clara County, creating a phone outage that affected not only normal phone service, but ATMs, cash registers, cell phones, alarm systems and Internet service.
Santa Clara County put out a call for emergency communication assistance and the Sunnyvale Office of Emergency Services (OES) answered. Under the direction of Lt. John Gienger, volunteer amateur radio operators trained in emergency communications through ongoing participation with the OES sponsored Sunnyvale Amateur Radio Emergency Services (SARES) organization provided emergency communications through the day and into the night at strategic points in the County. Sunnyvale supplied the largest number of amateur radio responders of any city in the North County, providing communication to schools, fire stations, key public access intersections, Cal Fire Command Posts and St. Louise Hospital. Emergency communications throughout the South Santa Clara County continued uninterrupted thanks to these well trained volunteers and their personal equipment, which they keep at the ready for emergencies.
Calendar
| date / time | event |
|---|---|
| Tue. 07/06/2010, 1130PDT | Luncheon, American Diner, 415 E. El Camino Real (cross street Cezanne) |
| Wed. 07/14/2010, 1800PDT | Bi-weekly dinner, American Diner, 415 E. El Camino Real (cross street Cezanne) |
| Tue. 07/20/2010, 1130PDT | Luncheon, American Diner, 415 E. El Camino Real (cross street Cezanne) |
| Wed. 07/28/2010, 1800PDT | Bi-weekly dinner, American Diner, 415 E. El Camino Real (cross street Cezanne) |
About us
What is SARES?
SARES is the local ARES group of radio amateur volunteers serving the
City of Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety. We provide reliable backup
communication links as well as additional eyes & ears and hands where
needed, always linked with 2-way radio. Under the mutual aid agreement we
also provide services to neighboring cities, the County of Santa Clara
Office of Emergency Services as well as to help organizations such as
the American Red Cross and The Salvation Army. SARES also operates a 2m
repeater hosted by the City of Sunnyvale DPS and a 70cm repeater hosted
by K-Comm on Crystal Peak.
How is SARES organized?
SARES is an independent citywide ARES group of the ARRL (American Radio
Relay League) Santa Clara Valley Section. SARES has over 100 members
in Sunnyvale and is led by a team of one Emergency Coordinator with
nine Assistant Emergency Coordinators. SARES is part of the SPECS net
(Southern Peninsula Emergency System) and SVECS net (Silicon Valley
Emergency Communications System).
What is in it for you ?
Free training opportunities as net control station, traffic handler,
VIP shadow, etc.; quarterly meetings with featured speakers; quarterly
exercise drills in the field and tabletop simulated emergency tests to
practice your skills; you can meet fellow hams and last but not least
you give back to your community and earn recognition by your community
by helping in times of need.
Other activities and social events:
Other non-disaster services that SARES provides: locating missing person,
child or vehicle. And don't forget the biggest emergency simulation
event of the year: ARRL Field Day on the last full weekend in June. We
traditionally serve as the primary communicators in the Lakewood Village
Christmas Parade each year. SARES has a traditional bi-weekly luncheon
at a local restaurant where you can meet other members of the group. For
the holiday season you and your family are invited to join us for a
potluck dinner.
It's free!
Membership in SARES is at no cost for you, and all services provided
by Radio Amateurs are strictly on a volunteer basis according to
the FCC Rules Part 97, which prohibit compensation for amateur radio
operators. The City of Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety provides
us with administrative support.
Please download the SARES Brochure 
(PDF format, 271388 Bytes) .
EC and AECs (alphabetical by call suffix)
Bob Gundrum K6RWG, EC [e-mail] [phone 408-734-0169]Dewey Churchill KG6AM, AEC [e-mail] [phone]
Roger Capwell AA3AP, AEC [e-mail] [phone]
Ralf Erickson WA6CQA, AEC [e-mail] [phone]
Howard Krawetz N6HM, AEC [e-mail] [phone]
Neal Enault WA6OCP, AEC [e-mail] [phone]
Andreas Ott K6OTT, AEC [e-mail] [cellphone 408-431-8727]
Phil Stewart K6PHL, AEC [e-mail] [phone]
Walt Lee K6WAL AEC [e-mail] [phone]
Skip LaFetra AA6WK, AEC [e-mail] [phone]
Contact information
To get more information about Sunnyvale ARES, please send e-mail to the EC Bob Gundrum K6RWG.
This web server is maintained by
Andreas Ott K6OTT as a trustee for the SunnyvaleARES.org domain.
Last updated on
$Date: 2010-07-02 05:57:01+00 $, document $Revision: 2.264 $.
© 2003-2009 SARES/K6OTT. All rights reserved.
