The purpose of this blog post is not to provide you all the technical answers, but give you an overview of what options there are for Emergency Communications and why you might choose them. Future articles will go into more specifics about each solution (with practical testing to take place when time permits), we are also open to suggestions should you have another option you think may be useful for other people to know about!
We will start with the question 'Why?':
Some people will rightly wonder why they should bother having an emergency communication setup, mobile phone coverage is really good and the Emergency alerts they receive will tell them when there is something up. The Government and First Responders will also be around to ensure any communication is handled, so they don't need to worry.
If this also describes you, then don't worry - it's not a personal dig at anyone! You should just consider whether these situations could occur for you and if so, you should consider how you would manage NOW so that you are not caught on the back foot.
Also you should remember, first responders are usually stretched thin at these times so you should always be prepared to take action and protect yourself, family and communities.
The following are real world examples, not just part of some Hollywood fantasy:
Power lines taken out:
Power lines going down mean your phone may not be charged when you need it, phone towers or internet exchanges may not be operating or may be operating at limited capacity. First Responder buildings and Government alerting systems are also likely to be down, even if there is a backup generator there is no guarantee that it works when it is needed.
(Please remember as well, always treat downed power lines as live and STAY AWAY!)
Internet services fail:
Internet services are relied on for some people in remote locations, utilizing VOLTE or VOIP options means they can use their cellphone outside of the standard coverage area. This can mean that when the internet fails, communication is lost. You also lose the ability to check news and social media for important alerts and information, so relying on internet connections can be a bad option as it provides a single point of failure (which fails often).
Cell towers overloaded:
We have seen this year after year during big events, not all of them bad! how many times on New Year and Christmas have your texts/calls failed due to the circuits being overloaded? This also happens during emergencies, this can be due to damage or power failure but also due to Emergency Services (or Military) taking over the infrastructure to manage the response. In situations such as these you want to make sure there is away to communicate with your family/friends.
Causes:
The causes can be varied, it could be due to the following and other scenarios:
Earthquake
Wildfire
Tsunami/Flooding
Terrorist Attack
Civil Disturbance
Solar flare activity
Grid failure
Hurricane/Tornado
Cyber attack
Effect:
The effect of this is that you may not know when and where to evacuate, you may head into danger because you have no idea where to go (this has happened in wildfires around the world). You may also lose communication with your family members, in this situation it can have a profound impact on your decisions and family members may go looking for others. While commendable, you may end up in a bad situation while looking for someone who is already at the safe zone waiting for you.
You may also miss key evolving information, one thing that was true 5-10 minutes ago, may change in a very quick timeframe.
These situations have occurred many times in recent years, despite the advances made in technology and coverage over the last 20 years - you can still find yourself without all the useful technologies when you really need them. Wildfires in America and Australia are examples of this, network overloads when Covid made everyone work from home and not to mention countries that are in a hostile environment with major communication issues. Although we never hope for any of these things to happen, we should always be prepared to deal with them if they do.
So what options do I have?
Luckily, there are some good robust options that you can have in your disaster bag.
Wind up Radio:
A good old staple of survival kits is a torch/radio that can be powered by winding the lever. This will allow you to tune into FM or AM radio stations where you may hear the emergency broadcast that helps keep you safe. Some examples of this are below, highly recommended as a last ditch backup.
We do not endorse any of these products, please do your research - we are simply providing some examples.
Walkie Talkies:
Standard walkie talkies for you and your family can be useful, although they have limited range and others may be on the same channel they should not be underestimated. These shop bought options are easy to use, legal to use without a license at any time and can help connect you and your friends/family. Another possible bonus of this option is multiple people on the channel can help disseminate information to the wider community, this is something you may want to collaborate with your neighbours and friends to ensure you are all on the same channel in an emergency.
Avoid kids toys walkie talkies, these do work but generally have the lowest range and you would get just the same communication out of yelling.
Meshtastic/LoRa:
This is a new technology that allows you to create an off-grid messaging platform that requires no internet or license to operate. We will create a post around this option at a later date as it is a bit of a large subject to cover! However it is worth considering as it can be cheap to get setup, works with phones so most people can use it without practice. Also worth noting is that the more people who have this setup, the more robust the network becomes. This can be a huge community advantage as you can set up public groups to share information and potentially help locate those who are lost. We will go into this in more detail later, however there is a lot of material and tutorials around on Youtube that explain this as well so you don't need to wait for us!
HAM Radio:
HAM Radios (Amateur radios) are nothing new, they are old school tech that is showing more and more to be vital in times of emergency. At many emergencies you will see there are Amateur Radio Emergency Communication teams that show up to provide communication to cut off communities, these are generally volunteers and there are many clubs out there who can help you learn. You generally have to be licensed to use HAM equipment, however in an emergency you are allowed to use this equipment to call for help. I would encourage you to contact your local HAM clubs and see about joining, you don't always need to be a technical genius (country dependent) you just need to be willing to learn and people like me are always willing to teach! You may even become a vital link in your community in times of need!
Baofeng/Quansheng/Other:
Due to a lot of people mentioning these types of radios after events, it is certainly worth mentioning here. While these radios are generally falling into the HAM section, many people are buying them for when they need them. Strictly speaking you would need a license to use these devices, depending where you are in the world it can be a fine and confiscation of the equipment if you are caught with it outside of emergencies. They can be useful as they can provide more powerful communications in emergencies, access to FM radio for updates, ability to listen into unencrypted communication (Fire, some Police, Ambo, Civil Defence) and usually also an emergency torch. It should be noted however that transmitting on some frequencies is going to be illegal, you should also know that in general day to day life it can be very illegal to act on what you hear! Some of these radios are also made with no real quality control so can bring fines if used improperly. While these can be useful to have for emergency situations, be very careful on how you use them outside of these types of scenarios.
Battery Packs:
To keep your items charged these days, you can not rely on power being available. Although the emergency sites may have generators - you may not be able to charge your devices as the power may be required for emergency operations. You should ideally have a power bank to keep your devices charged, there are many out there and you should choose one that best suits your situation (bigger is better, but can you carry it for a long distance and in a hurry?) If you are wanting to operate a HAM as your communication backup then you may need a larger pack, however meshtastic and your phone won't require a high power source.
Car Radio and Power:
If you can take a car and don't need to abandon it, this is can be very useful for charging your phone, run a local CB radio or charge other devices from the 12V socket (make sure you have the right adaptor). You should ensure your car is tuned into FM and AM radio that your area may use for emergency alerts, this will save you having to hunt for the frequency when you are under pressure and a great deal of stress.
CB Radios:
CB Radios used to be a bigger thing, but they still knock around! you can get one easily and set it up in your car to communicate in an emergency. These are generally able to be used without a license (I don't know the local laws everywhere, so always double check!) and can be useful if others are also using the system.
Starlink/Satellite Internet:
Starlink and other satellite internet providers are very useful, we have seen them dropped into areas that had no communication and they were able to provide immediate, fast and reliable connection to manage the response as well as connect families. With this becoming more affordable and practical, it is not hard to get one and keep it on a pay as you go or other plan that can be activated when needed. You can also get more portable and power efficient models, which should be considered when you are thinking about how you will power this in the event of emergency. If you have not got a power source for these, they are likely to be dead weight.
Sat Phones:
Satellite phones are still around and used by teams worldwide when they are out of normal coverage areas, they can be great but you need to ensure you keep the plan going and this can be cost prohibitive. They are very useful and generally hold their charge pretty well, you will need to ensure you have a way to recharge this for long duration emergencies.
Personal Locator Beacons (PLB/EPIRB etc.):
These beacons come in all shapes and sizes, they are used by people at sea, hiking in land, climbers and lone workers all over the world just incase they get into trouble. These have their own battery life and will get help to you, there may also be a shelf life so cost considerations may be your primary decider in going for this option.
So in summary, there are a range of options for you to consider with regards to emergency communications. You should pick the one that fits you and your situation the best, some may be cost prohibitive and others may just be too bulky for your situation so you should give it some consideration before rushing to buy something.
Some further points to consider:
Find those local radio stations now, the last thing you want to do is try to remember or manually hunt for things when you could have had it noted down or programmed in (ideally both!).
Consult with family and community members, if more of the community is on the same page you will find greater results.
Split the cost with other members of the community, you could have 2-3 people who focus on getting emergency power, 2-3 who focus on communications and others who focus on having other essentials. That way when the worst happens, the community works together to deal with whatever is thrown at it.
Keep up to date with Civil Defence plans, you may be the one with the latest information and may be the one disseminating it to people you communicate with. If you are doing this, always stick to the latest advice, if someone has more updated information from an official source then you should work off that latest information.
Hopefully you have found this useful, more articles are planned for when time permits to demonstrate some of these - however this may be a way away as fire season approaches. Do your research, if you have questions please send an email through to us! we are always happy to answer what we can.
Stay safe!
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