Volunteers from the Skagit Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Club (SARECC) in Anacortes, Washington, recently assisted the US Coast Guard in tracking the source of interference on VHF Marine Channel 5A (156.250 MHz). This channel serves the commercial Vessel Traffic Service north of Bush Point on Whidbey Island, as well as in some Canadian waters in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The service offers monitoring and navigational assistance for ships in the region.

The club reports that the channel was unusable for 30 hours, forcing all traffic to other channels. SARECC volunteers promptly tracked down the source of the offending signal — a fishing vessel at the Squalicum Harbor fuel dock — and traffic on channel 5A was able to resume. Last fall, club volunteers were also able to pin down an interference problem for the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad. — Thanks to Richard Rodriguez, WB6NAH