Emergency officials use ham radio operators during winter storms (West Virginia)

MEIGS COUNTY, Ohio (WSAZ) – With winter weather slamming much of the region, emergency officials are activating a different kind of backup — one that doesn’t rely on cell towers or Wi-Fi.

It’s called ARES — Amateur Radio Emergency Service — and it’s full of ham radio operators trained to step in when traditional communication goes down.

Joe Barnhart with the Meigs County Auxiliary Communications said it takes a team to be prepared.

“It was a busy weekend. We started Friday setting up equipment. On Saturday, we stood up our auxiliary group. Meigs EMA asked us to have volunteers ready to deploy to warming shelter in case service or internet was down,” Barnhart said.

A team of operators checked in to the network during the weekend. They’re acting as a human link — taking calls, confirming locations, and pushing critical information up the chain of command.

“We set up an emergency communication with various services, whether its amateur radio or GMRS radio, which is the General Mobile Radio Service and that allows people with even radio service, to hear and commute with the general networks, that gives real world information for weather conditions, snow levels, the Meigs EMS wants us to send out,” Barnhart said.

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