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September 2025 Comm Ex – Results Presentation

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A PowerPoint presentation (.pptx) file with the September 2025 Comm Ex results is now available.

Thanks to Dennison Coomer, Matt Catoe, Roger Mull, and Gabe Turner for their assistance in bringing the data set together for this analysis.

Here is the link:  Sept_2025_CommEx_Results_2

The .kml information sources for the GoogleErth maps on slides 3, 8, and 13 are listed below:
Sep2025_CommEx_40M

Sep2025_CommEx_2M

Sep2025_CommEx_6M

Download any or all of these three files to your system.

Start GoogleEarth.  When GoogleEarth opens, go to the “File” entry on the top toolbar, click the “Open” selection in the list, click the desired file name, then click “Open”.

If you have any questions related to the information in the presentation, feel free to contact me.

Robert (WR8RW)

Statewide “Field Day” Exercise – Saturday 13th September 2025

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The latest updates for the 13th September “Field Day” exercise materials have been completed.

The central link below (thanks to Matt Catoe, SC ESF2) contains all the important information for this exercise.

https://scesf2.readyop.com/fs/4crm/a106638a

If you have any follow up questions related to Saturday’s exercise contact:
Robert Webster – robert.webster@ares-sc.org OR
Roger Mull – KD4JQJ@arrl.net

ARES Statewide Sunday Evening Net For The Remainder Of The 2025 Hurricane Season

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The Statewide ARES Sunday Evening Net Schedule, for the remainder of the 2025 Hurricane Season has been confirmed.

The net will convene on the following Sunday evenings at 20.00 US ET:
9/14/25, 9/28/25
10/12/25, 10/26/25
11/9/25, 11/23/25

Information regarding the non-hurricane season nets schedule and format  (December 2025 through May 2026) will be available  in October 2025.

If you have questions, send them along to Robert (WR8RW) at robert.webster@ares-sc.org

Upcoming Events in SC Area 6

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  • Ham & GMRS Radio Swap Meet & Tailgate.

Who? Open to all ham & GMRS Operators.

What? Meet & Greet fellow operators, swap equipment, discuss radio gear.

When? Saturday, September 20, 2025 9 am – 1 pm.

Where? 1077 Union Hill Rd, Salley, SC

Host/Contact: Ron Hall, KJ4CN at KJFOURCN@GMAIL.COM

 

  • The AIKEN ARES group meets for training the 1st Wednesday of every month.

6 pm – 8:30 pm at EMS Building 5, 621 York St., Aiken, SC

Due to other obligations for the county emergency communications trailer THE SEPTEMBER MEETING HAS BEEN CANCELLED.

 

73,

Chris Webb, WB4EML

Aiken ARES Net Manager

(865) 964-3625

Upcoming ARES / Amateur Radio Events In Region 4

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The upcoming are August and September 2025 ARES / Amateur Radio events as presented on the 3 August SC ARES Statewide Net by John (KE4JRK)

Event                                        Date / Time                      Location                                Contact                         Event Page

Florence ARC                      8/9                             West Florence Fire             Scott (KG4HIE)        Florence ARC
Tailgate                                 8AM – 1 PM              Company Annex                  843-479-4794

28th International         8/16  00.01 UTC     Hunting Island SC                                                         Lighthouse Event
Lighthouse Lightship    8/17 24.00 UTC
Weekend

Iron Mountain                  8/22                               Cripple Creek VA                 Randy (KE4RL)       Iron Mountain
Jubilee Endurance         8/23
Horse Ride

Get Ready                          8/22                                Greenville SC                                                                  Get Ready G’ville
Greenville
Registration
Deadline

ARRL Podcast                 8/26                                  On Line                                    ead@arrl.org                        Podcast Link
(September                      8.00 PM
National
Preparedness
Month)

Get Ready                         9/13                                Greenville SC                                                                     Get Ready G’ville
Greenville                        10 AM

Special Event                9/26 – 10/3                       145.190                                 Vicki Carnes                     Project Helene
N2G Hurricane           5 PM –                              (Mt. Mitchell                               (AD3I)
Helene                              9 PM                                  NC Repeater)                     vfcarnes@gmail.com
.                                                                                          EchoLink Node
.                                                                                               593509
.                                                                                             (N2GE-R)

Have questions?  Contact John (KE4JRK) at KE4JRK@gmail.com.

SC ARES – Agreed Replacement For Ham Shack Hotline

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Recently the SC ARES DEC  (District Emergency Coordinator) Working Group met to discuss the topic of an SC ARES agreed replacement for the Ham Shack Hotline Voice Over IP (VOIP) service that will be decommissioned 31 August 2025.

The team agreed that Hams Over IP (HOIP) will be the SC ARES VOIP preferred replacement for Ham Shack Hotline.

Like Ham Shack Hotline, HOIP is a “no cost to the user” service. Numerous VOIP desk phone sets are supported as well certain soft phones. Your current desk set may very well be supported.

There are a some initial steps required to have a “number” assigned to you, and your HOIP implementation credentials being established.

-First go to:
https://helpdesk.hamsoverip.com/osticket/account.php?do=create
to establish an HOIP account
-Then go to:
https://helpdesk.hamsoverip.com/osticket/open.php
to log in, then open a “new ticket” requesting a “number”
Note: to establish an account, and to be assigned a “number”,  you will be required to submit an electronic image of your current active Amateur Radio license.

Following the approval of your “number” request, HOIP will e-mail you the credentials to “provision” your phone / set.

You are encouraged to migrate to HOIP as soon as you are able.  The 31 August date is not that far off.

ARES Statewide Sunday Evening Net – Schedule Update

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The ARES statewide Sunday evening net schedule for the remainder of July and August  2025 has been updated.  The dates for our nets during these two months are:
20 July
3 August
17 August
31 August

On these upcoming nets, in July and August, we will be adding information segments related to:
-The latest hurricane prediction / status with time for Q & A
-SCHEART system status overview and important outages or upcoming changes with time for Q & A
-Any upcoming ARES / Amateur Radio-based events of note

Between these segments will take check ins as we customarily have done.

During July and August a team, consisting of ARES leaders and partners, will undertake a review of the net and suggest updates that would help add more value to the net.  It is anticipated that any changes recommended by this team will be ready by 7 September.

Updates will be available on this website as they occur.

If anyone has questions or suggestions feel free to contact WR8RW on robert.webster@ares-sc.org.

SC ARES Tactical Plan 2025 Update Published

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The SC ARES Tactical Plan V4_7F June 19th, 2025 has been published.

Summary of changes:
1. Numerous formatting and grammar changes to improve document readability.
2. Greenville Tactical repeater changed from CTCSS to DCS and is noted in red text in Section 8
3. Appendix C: SC AUXCOMM is updated to reflect the 2024 change from an online database to the ReadyOp system. Invitations to participate in SC AUXCOMM program must be provided by the SCEMD Communication Manager or his designee.  The old SC AUXCOMM online database has been closed.
Many thanks to Roger Mull (KD4JQJ) and Tom Poole (W4ATP) for their work on these updates.

AUXCOMM USA WINLINK P2P PARTY – BEGINNING 13 May at 00.00 UTC

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The AuxComm USA Winlink P2P Party will begin Tuesday 13 May at UTC 00:00 . This event will operate on frequency 14.119 (USB), using VARA HF.  This is a 24 hours exercise.

Tuesday’s exercise is a reschedule of the event that was cancelled on Tuesday 6 May due to poor propagation conditions.

The final destination station, WX0NET, will be on its North-South Antenna for the first 12 hours, and its East-West antenna for the last 12 hours.

As of now there are two confirmed relay stations:
One in Colorado, callsign N0OM
A second in Washington State, callsign KJ7SJG

Additional relay stations are still needed.  If you want to volunteer as a relay station, send an email to Admin@AuxCommUSA.org with your name, location, and callsign. You will be added to the list on the AuxComm USA (Public) Facebook page.

Try to connect when it’s most convenient for you. Some congestion is expected, so be patient. Remember messages are intended to be Winlink point-to-point.  Telnet messages and messages sent via RMS Gateways will not be counted.

Winlink Wednesday

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As you know Winlink is a very important tool in the volunteer emergency communicator toolbox.  We want to get South Carolina on the map.  The challenge is to send a Winlink message as explained here, every Wednesday before midnight. And we can get South Carolina on the map. This training task is coordinated by Mark Goddard,  KN4KRZ,   goddard.mw@gmail.com

How? Send a Winlink message to KN4LQN as formatted below. Send the message in any mode including Telnet, VARA FM, VARA HF, or any others.
 
To: KN4LQN 
Subject: Winlink Wednesday Check-In 
Message body: call sign, first name, city or town, county, state (HF or VHF, etc.) 
 
Your message will look something like mine below. Except, of course, with your information in the message:
 
Then, check back on Thursday, May 17 to see your callsign’s place marker on this week’s map.
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Here’s a screenshot of results from yesterday’s (May 15th). Winlink Wednesday. It’s difficult to see some of the callsigns, so here’s a link in case you want to zoom in to see your specific area:  https://www.qsl.net/kw4shp/WinlinkWed/WWmap.html
THANKS to everyone who checked in and contributed to this impressive increase from last week. If you missed this week, not to worry. You’ll have another opportunity next Wednesday, May 22nd.
Thanks and 73,
Mark
KN4KRZ