SB SPCL @ ARL $ARLX012
ARLX012 Hams maintain flood relief efforts

ZCZC AX12
QST de W1AW
Special Bulletin 12  ARLX012
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  May 9, 1997
To all radio amateurs

SB SPCL ARL ARLX012
ARLX012 Hams maintain flood relief efforts

North Dakota Section Manager Bill Kurtti, WC0M, reports that the
need for ham radio assistance ''is pretty well over'' in that state's
flood zones along the Red River, but some hams continue on duty.
''People are going back home to clean up the mess and, for many, it
will require a new start,'' Kurtti said.  In some cases, he said,
homes and jobs are gone.

Kurtti said hams continue to assist the Salvation Army with flood
recovery efforts, and he plans to visit the station in Grand Forks.
He said the Salvation Army station has continued to be very busy.
And he anticipated that the need for ham radio assistance could
increase once evacuees are allowed to return to their homes.

Minnesota SEC Gary Peterson, N0ZOD, his wife, Gladys, KB0TUT, and
several other hams from Southeast Minnesota visited the flood zone
earlier this month.  He described a communication facility at the
Crookston, Minnesota, Salvation Army distribution center that
''consisted of a small operating position with a dirt floor in a
dark, cold corner of the warehouse,'' where local hams staffed the
center all day long.  The group included several newly licensed
hams.  Peterson said East Grand Forks, Minnesota, ARES members at
one point even dispatched fire units in that city when the 911
system went down.

Peterson cited several clubs for special mention, including the
Rochester ARC, the Winona ARC and the Redwing ARC.  Overall, it's
estimated that hundreds of hams pitched in during the flood
emergency and recovery effort.  Peterson also had words of praise
for East Grand Forks (Minnesota) ARES EC John Engle, WA0LPV, and
Grand Forks (North Dakota) ARES EC Gerald Nies, N0NGW, who manned
ARES operations from their respective positions on opposite sides of
the Red River during the flood.

Peterson said he was impressed by the dedication and hard work hams
were putting out to help others, taking time off from their jobs and
using their own gear.  ''It is such a pleasure to be associated with
these people,'' he said.
NNNN
/EX