Members of the Clearfield County Amateur Radio Club have started a project which will add WinLink capabilities to the Clearfield County Emergency Management Agency’s Communications Center.

According to the WinLink.org web site, “WinLink is a network of amateur radio and authorized government stations that provide worldwide radio email using radio pathways where the internet is not present. The system is built, operated and administered entirely by licensed “Ham” volunteers. It supports email with attachments, position reporting, weather and information bulletins, and is well-known for its role in interoperable emergency and disaster relief communications. It is capable of operating completely without the internet–automatically–using smart-network radio relays. Licensed Winlink operators/stations use both amateur radio and government radio frequencies worldwide.”

The system is especially well suited for Emergency Communications activities as was demonstrated during the October Simulated Emergency Test (SET). The addition of WinLink to the Clearfield EMA Center will allow communications traffic and messages to be handled far more quickly and accurately than was previously being done with voice communications. CCARC members are looking forward to testing the new WinLink station in the coming months adding this much needed capability to the EMA Center.