The Mason County
ARES organization works as one unit, under the direction of the Emergency
coordinator for our served agencies. We believe a unified response provides the
strongest response to a given emergency or disaster. Welcome to our website.
During the early phases of any countywide emergency, it can be assumed that the
existing communication systems used daily by most agencies, particularly public
safety, may fail or become severely overloaded.
Volunteer radio communicators may be called upon to supply communication
services where no established links exist or to supplement existing systems when
they become disabled or overloaded. Public safety communications systems are
designed to routinely handle emergency situations. It is not feasible for them
to also maintain resources, which can meet the demands of all major disasters.
In those instances, volunteer radio communicators serve to complement existing
governmental and disaster agency communications resources.
The magnitude of a particular emergency situation will determine the degree to
which volunteer communications systems are utilized. Volunteer communication
support is generally needed at EOC's, emergency shelters, police departments,
hospitals, and at major emergency scenes.
Services provided by
volunteers may include:
* Communication between
Mason County and other governmental agencies.
* Supplemental
communication services to disaster relief organizations, including the:
American Red Cross and
Salvation Army.
* Supplemental communication services to hospitals and other medical
resources.
* Health and Welfare
communications for the general public. (National Traffic System)
* Additional public
service communications as required.