Overview

Welcome to the 2025 Pennsylvania Simulated Emergency Test (SET) scheduled for 5 April 2025. Red Cross Emergency Station (RCES) nets will be on April 5 from 1000 to 1200 local time. Winlink messages can be sent at any time on April 5th or 6th. 

This SET includes Red Cross Emcomm, Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) and unaffiliated stations across Pennsylvania and is a collaboration of:

  • EPA ARES (ARRL Eastern Pennsylvania Section)
  • WPA ARES (ARRL Western Pennsylvania Section)
  • ARC GPA (American Red Cross Greater Pennsylvania Region)
  • ARC SEPA (American Red Cross Southeastern Pennsylvania Region)

All Pennsylvania amateur radio operators are invited to participate.

RCES Net Check-in

You’ll be connecting to Red Cross Emcomm Stations or their associated nets. Stations and Nets are listed in FREQUENCY TABLE. You may operate from home or deploy. If you deploy, it’s suggested that you find a location close to a potential emcomm mission. This includes hospitals, law enforcement, government sites, schools and sports facilities (the latter two are potential shelter locations). You may check-in with as many RCES stations and nets that you can reach. There will be over 20 RCES station nets on the air on local repeaters. 

  • Use FREQUENCY TABLE to locate nets that you can reach.
  • Check-in with all the nets that you can reach.
  • Check-in with net control. Provide your call, name, location (municipality and county), if you are ARES, Red Cross or belong to any other organization. If you are at a potential emcomm site, provide the site name (ie Phoenixville Hospital).

See NOTES FOR PARTICIPANTS in the full instructions for additional details.

We are also going to be doing a simplex test during the same 2 hour SET time period.  

Please see the following comments from Bob Famiglio, K3RF

Please be advised that I will be activating the Rose Tree Fire Company (www.rosetreefire.com) location in Media, central Delaware county, (US RT 1 & PA 252) during this test.  In the county seat, we can talk everywhere it seems.  The station runs on 100% emergency power including heat and A/C for unlimited time period with redundant sources off the mains if necessary.  It is also a major hub of the county new 700/800 MHz Public safety P25 radio system just completed at Rose Tree last week.  During a “black sky” day we have immediate access to the county emergency talk groups when actually necessary from the ham radio room.  Simplex range tested is about 50 miles on 2 meters and almost as much on 440 simplex base to base from that location as it is 340 Feet ASL. The antennas of course are higher on the station. 

If any Delco station wants to reach us to test their ability to function without repeater coverage, always a good test, that would be a good time.  We can use DELCO preferred simplex channels if you like since many users will have those.  I have maybe at least 10 mile coverage to portable, hand-held radios from Rose Tree.  Let me know if you want to set something up.  I can likely talk to all members using the Delco go kits inside their home or out in their vehicles wherever they choose to go.  I may also be able to host one or two other ARES crew to observe from the fire station.

In an actual emergency, Delco ARES should operate from the center of the county, Media the county seat to reach everyone, from our hardened site, with major simplex and HF antennas installed.  The Lima EOC has an HF antenna to use but no real VHF/UHF antennas anymore for robust simplex coverage.  As a secondary site, Rose Tree has a separate, 2nd radio room for hams and significant capabilities exceeding the capabilities available at our EOC.  We have spare installed antennas available 2 meter and 440 and other bands available simultaneously.  So, as a life member of the company now and the radio officer we can plan on its availability during real emergencies and drills if and when needed as it will not interfere with fire company operations.

The station will either operate under K3RF or W3KG.  I’ll decide that before Saturday. Let us know what else you might think of or like to do Saturday during the 2 hour window.  Does not have to be complicated, but some may want to see how far they can talk without any repeater.  During a test last year, we could communicate with mobile stations on VHF and UHF out to Allentown and beyond depending on which direction.  Southern Delaware and south Jersey going east and south.

Bob Famiglio, K3RF
N3KZ & W3KG Repeater Management Team

Also, for WB3JOE, please see these comments from MARC

WB3JOE 147.06 is linked to 145.13. Both use the same PL 131.8.  MARC owns, installed, operates, and maintains them both.  

The former is in Paoli.  The other is in Newtown Square.  If you use the one, you automatically use the other.  You should include the 145.13 repeater on your list since their combined coverage area is greater than either one alone.

73
Brian Kelly, AA3BK
Secretary
Mid-Atlantic Amateur Radio Club (MARC)


Channel #

Channel Name

Receive

Transmit

Off Freq

Off Dir

Mode

Tone

CTCSS
001 DC S1 TACTICAL 146.565 146.565 0 Simplex FM None
002 DC S2 TACTICAL 146.535 146.535 0 Simplex FM None
032 DA WB3JOE NEWTOWN SQUARE 147.06 147.66 0.6 + Plus FM Tone 131.8 Hz
047 CA WB3JOE PAOLI 145.13 144.53 0.6 - Minus FM Tone 131.8 Hz
072 EPA R1 N3KZ PHILADELPHIA 147.27 147.87 0.6 + Plus FM Tone 77.0 Hz
075 PA WM3PEN CENTER CITY 146.685 146.085 0.6 - Minus FM Tone 146.2 Hz


Please make the following check-ins:

  • Simplex To K3RF or W3KG on S1 146.565 channel 1 to Rose Tree Fire in Media.
  • Simplex to W3CTK on S2 146.535 channel 2 to ARES Trailer in Radnor.
  • Repeater To WA3ARC on WB3JOE either channel 32 Newtown Sq OR channel 47 Paoli, but not both since these are linked systems
  • Repeater To W3ERS on N3KZ channel 72
  • Repeater To WA3ARC on WM3PEN channel 75

After checking into each of the above 5 nets, please email me at w3ctk@delcoares.org and let me know which ones were successful and which ones you could not make contact with.

Winlink ARC Frost Report

For this exercise, you are provided with a prefilled shelter report. In an actual operation the Emcomm operator would make no changes but for this exercise you will revise the report with your ham call and address. 

DO NOT send the FROST spreadsheet by Winlink.

DO NOT use Save As CSV. Instead create a CSV per these instructions.

The native Excel spreadsheet is too large for Winlink. Instead, extract the data line (line 2) to a CSV file and send the CSV file by Winlink. The receiving station will paste line 2 into a blank FROST spreadsheet and forward it by email to Red Cross.

Download the exercise FROST spreadsheet from:

FROST 2025-04-04 Liberty.xlsx - Google Sheets

Ralph Moffat KB3UYV has provided a video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-mUnU5b3E4 that shows the process.

Conversion process

Personalize the Shelter Report with your specific information

  1. Open the Shelter Report spreadsheet.
  2. Enter your ham call as Shelter ID.
  3. Enter your first name as Site name.
  4. Enter your base station or portable deployed location as the street address, include county.
  5. Save the Shelter report spreadsheet.

Prepare A CSV file for transmission via Winlink.

  1. Open a new/blank spreadsheet.
  2. Open the Shelter Report (the one with your information).
  3. Copy line 2 from the Shelter Report and paste it into the new spreadsheet.
  4. Save the new spreadsheet as a CSV file. Name the file as YOURCALL.CSV (ex: W3ABC.CSV).

Send the Shelter Report.

  1. Open a Winlink session.
  2. Open a new message.
  3. Address the Winlink message to ARC-PCARES with subject YOURCALL SHELTER REPORT (ex: W3ABC SHELTER REPORT)
  4. Attach the CSV file you just made to the message.
  5. Send the Winlink message.

The FROST reports will be received by the exercise team. Metrics will be reported.

Please see below for the full instructions for the SET