Destiny Survival

The BBC is broadcasting life-saving information to the hundreds of thousands of people affected by the monumental flooding in Pakistan. So many are cut off from emergency aid efforts. They’re issuing bulletins in the languages spoken most there on staying safe, avoiding disease, and how to get food and other help.

It’s not uncommon for this to be done by the BBC and other international broadcasters, including Christian ministries like Trans World Radio. Most international broadcasters have cut back on shortwave transmissions in favor of partnering with local AM and FM outlets who receive designated programming by satellite and Internet.

Though the Internet is growing world wide, many in lesser developed countries still rely heavily on radio for information. Local and international broadcasters provide a useful and valuable service that can literally save lives.

When there’s a major natural disaster here in the U.S., where do most of us get our information? Though many turn to the Internet with computers or smart phones, plenty of us still turn to local radio. AM and FM broadcasts may be the only option when the power’s out.

A key advantage to listening to radio is you don’t have to be connected to the Internet. No wireless connection required. The only thing you need is good batteries or another source of power, such as a wind-up generator or solar power. Radios have gotten better at stretching battery life, too.

We often turn to radio in severe weather. But think back a few years to a bigger event–Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Radio stations in New Orleans combined efforts and personnel to provide useful information to their listeners.

People who still had phone service of some kind could call into the stations to report what was happening in their neighborhoods. For me the listener, this was fascinating.

I was able to listen in because, like many, I can hear WWL radio, New Orleans, at night from hundreds of miles away. In fact, WHRI, a U.S. shortwave station, broadcasted WWL to an even larger audience.

When the big earthquake struck San Francisco in 1989, I heard the rebroadcast of one of San Francisco’s stations on WLS, Chicago. Again, for me it made for fascinating listening.

In 1999 during the pre-Y2K jitters, one expert made a list of skywave radio stations available on his Web site. He believed it was important to be able to listen to those stations which could be heard over great distances at night.

You may have your own examples of how standard broadcast radio has been helpful to you in a time of disaster. If so, you already know how important it is to have a simple AM/FM radio in your survival supplies.

Many companies offer small portable radios as part of their ready-made survival kits. Some radios are combined with flashlights. Without trying out such radios ahead of time, it’s hard to say whether they’ll meet your needs adequately during or after a disaster.

I recommend getting a good radio. It may be necessary to monitor stations at a distance if local stations are knocked off the air. Cheaper radios may not pick up distant stations well.

The CC Observer or the Kaito WRX911 both have excellent AM reception. The Observer has weather band coverage and a LED flashlight. The Kaito is a pocket radio with shortwave coverage. Both are simple to operate, which is a plus in stressful situations. Neither are expensive when you consider what each does.

Unless we have a giant EMP (electromagnetic pulse) one day which takes out all things electronic, you can’t beat an AM/FM radio as an information source when disaster strikes. Make sure you have one or two among your survival supplies. I wouldn’t be without mine.

We all know how common it is for electricity to go out as a result of thunderstorms. It’s an inconvenience none of us wants to experience.

My friend Bruce in Canada came up with a nifty idea for having light during a recent power outage, and it made his neighbor curious. How did he have light?

He connected a lamp to the UPS (uninterrupted power supply) of his computer.

Bruce said a UPS is essentially a storage battery and inverter, so he thought he’d experiment. He tried light bulbs of various wattages and found a 15 Watt compact fluorescent bulb lasted a little over two hours. A five Watt LED bulb lasted five hours. Low wattage bulbs gave light comparable to that of a candle.

He also powered his cordless phone to call the power company when electricity was out. He doesn’t have a cell phone, but thinks a UPS might charge one in such a situation.

You can click here to view Bruce’s recent blog post for more info on his experiments with light bulbs.

If you need a UPS for whatever reason, check out the variety of UPS brands and models available at Batteries.com. Click on the ad banner below. On the home page you can search for a UPS under Devices. Then choose the manufacturer and model.

What do you think of Bruce’s idea? Have you tried any similar experiments? Leave a comment and share your thoughts.

This weekend Field Day for amateur radio operators is taking place throughout the country. According to the ARRL (Amateur Radio Relay League) description, Field Day is “…the single most popular on-the-air event held annually in the US and Canada.”

Over 35,000 ham radio operators gather with their clubs, friends or by themselves to operate as they would in case of emergency or disaster. Some treat it as a contest, but Field Day offers the opportunity to practice emergency response capabilities.

Field Day puts amateur radio on display for the public, including elected officials and members of emergency response organizations ham radio serves.

Amateur radio is so called because operators don’t do what they do for commercial purposes, such as do the broadcast stations on AM and FM or TV. It is a hobby which has provided technological innovations over the last several decades.

Many ham radio operators serve their communities by being involved in public service activities. Ham radio often receives praise for the professional way in which operators handle crises, such as storms, earthquakes, etc.

Field Day exhibits the various modes of amateur radio as it functions generally without electrical power from the grid. You might see some ham operators still using Morse code, though code proficiency is no longer required to get a ham license. Or you might see operators talking by voice to distant countries around the world—without the use of the Internet. Various digital over-the-air modes are popular as well.

Each club handles Field Day a little differently, but you can expect to see modern radio equipment powered by generators, batteries, or even solar power. Click here to find a club engaged in Field Day activities near you.

You’ll also find useful resources concerning survival communications on my Links of Interest page.

I hadn’t heard anything about REACT for years and was surprised to discover it’s still around. But they are, and they offer emergency communications training, regardless of whether you’re into ham radio, CB or GMRS.

REACT is the abbreviation for Radio Emergency Associated Communications Team. They’ve been around since 1962. Their primary focus for years was citizens band (CB) radio. Over the years they’ve been a leader in public service radio communications.

REACT is looking for more volunteers. Every emergency call requires a monitor to succeed. REACT’s Emergency Communications training and certification program is there to provide the public service community with trained radio operators who have a consistent level of expertise in Emergency Communications no matter where they live.

The training program itself is free! You can download the training course manual from REACT’s site at no cost. But there’s a small cost for printing and postage if you order printed materials.

You don’t have to go anywhere to take the course because it’s done by independent study on your own. REACT encourages its teams and councils to set up study groups.

While this REACT EComm (emergency communications) Training and Certification program is designed for REACT members, anyone is welcome to download and read the course materials. The certification part of the program is generally limited to REACT members. REACT encourages anyone who’s not already a member to become one.

If you want to find out more about how emergency communications works, you can still take training if you don’t want the certification. REACT has more info on what’s necessary for certification if you want that.

REACT’s EComm program was developed with input from ham radio operators, licensed GMRS operators, active CBers, and other radio operators. That includes current or former members of REACT, RACES, ARES, SATERN, the American Red Cross, and other voluntary organizations active in a time of disaster.

Don’t worry if you don’t know what all those names mean. The idea is that a broad array of knowledge went into putting the training and certification program together. It’s meant to reflect REACT’s multi-mode, multi-service approach to emergency communications.

Ham radio operators are no doubt aware that ARRL (the Amateur Radio Relay League) offers EComm training, too. REACT’s program teaches the same procedures for interacting with public agencies, but is different because it also covers citizens band radio, the General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS), the popular Family Radio Service (FRS), and the Multi-Use Radio Service (MURS).

If you’re interested in finding out more, click here for information on REACT’s extensive emergency communications training program

This week’s DestinySurvival Amazon Pick of the Week is the Kaito WRX911 Worldband Radio. (Worldband is another name for shortwave.) This is a pocket sized radio with AM, FM and nine shortwave bands, and it would make a great addition to your survival kit or bug out bag.

I’m not sure how long the Kaito WRX911 has been around, but I first saw it on Amazon a couple years ago priced just under $60. Last year it sold for just under $40. Now you can get it for just under $20. So I bought one. It’s a good radio for the price, and you might want to get more than one.

This is a no frills analog radio. There’s nothing digital about it. It has no clocks or other bells and whistles. If that’s the kind of radio you’re looking for, then buy the Kaito WRX911.

AM sensitivity is excellent, especially when the telescoping whip is lifted slightly away from the top of the radio. Shortwave is also sensitive and coverage goes from roughly 4.7 MHz. to 22 MHz. Frequency range on the nine shortwave bands is very good. Stations do not bleed into each other as with other radios I’ve seen in this price range.

There is less to hear on shortwave than there was 5-10 years ago, but if you’re familiar with shortwave enough to know what to listen for, this radio offers good reception for news and information. It would make a great travel companion.

The down side is that FM is disappointingly poor. You get strong local signals, but not much else because the radio overloads so easily. When listening through the stereo ear buds, audio is in mono, but sounds very good. The FM reception would be suitable if you’re at a ball game where a local FM station carries the broadcast.

The Kaito WRX911 has a wrist strap and comes with ear buds and a cloth pouch to protect it. When it’s not in the pouch, it will fit into a shirt pocket. It runs on 2 AA batteries and can also be operated with a 3 volt DC adaptor, which isn’t included. I’d guess battery life is quite good, though I haven’t gone through a set at this point.

The Kaito WRX911 has a rating of 3.2 out of 5 stars on Amazon.com. If not for the FM’s performance, I think it would deserve a higher rating. Overall, this is an excellent choice for including in your survival kit or bug out bag.

To order your Kaito WRX911 Worldband Radio, click on the image of the radio below, and you’ll be taken to the Amazon.com page where it’s featured. Place your order there.

In an emergency or crisis, it’s important to have as many means as you can for getting news and information. I’ve got several radios, and they each serve a specific purpose. For a small, no frills analog radio that’s sensitive on AM and shortwave and is easy to operate, get the Kaito WRX911 to keep with your survival supplies.

If you haven’t stocked your survival supplies with rechargeable batteries, now’s a great time to do it. Plus, now’s also the time to get a super deal on a portable charger for charging up to four AA and AAA batteries at a time, while they’re still in stock at Batteries.com. Now through April 4th you pay less than half what you’d pay elsewhere for this charger.

Money saving isn’t the only great thing about this charger. This is a real keeper for your survival kits and supplies because there’s more than one way to power it. Not only does it come with an AC adapter for plugging into the wall, but it includes a USB cable to charge from your computer.

Best of all, in my opinion, it comes with a DC adapter to charge from your car or truck cigarette lighter. That’s a real plus if you’re traveling or camping and the rechargeable batteries run down in your camera or other portable devices.

This versatile charger isn’t the only thing on sale this week at Batteries.com. When I mentioned stocking up on rechargeable batteries, I meant it because Batteries.com has an unbelievable price on 4-packs of Energizer AA and AAA batteries.

Believe me, Energizer rechargeable batteries are worth it if you had to pay full price. But why do that when you can take advantage of this super Deal of the Week?

Click on the ad banner below to be taken directly to the page featuring the battery charger and great prices on AA and AAA batteries. You have until April 4th, or until supplies run out. Because AA and AAA batteries are so commonly used in portable devices, take advantage of this Deal of the Week before it’s too late.

If it’s after April 4, 2010 when you’re viewing this, click on the ad banner below, and you’ll see the current Deal of the Week featured on the home page. If it’s not what you’re looking for, you’ll still find great prices on batteries and chargers to add to your survival supplies.