‘Eyes on the ground’

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‘Eyes on the ground’

Thu, 01/05/2023 - 08:48
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Local radio operators link with weather service

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Monitor Photo/Russell Slaton
Charles Ligon (pictured) and other Cedar Creek Amateur Radio Club members monitor inclement weather and report to the National Weather Service.

WellsCourtesy Photo
Charles Wells of the Cedar Creek Amateur Radio Club won the 2022 North Texas Ham of the Year Award from the North Texas Section of the American Radio Relay League.

CEDAR CREEK LAKE–When bad weather is on the horizon, Cedar Creek Amateur Radio Club (CCARC) members such as Charles Wells and Charles Ligon stand ready as amateur radio operators (or “ham”) to help protect the region.
Wells won the 2022 North Texas Ham of the Year Award from the American Radio Relay League’s (ARRL) North Texas Section. He moved to Cedar Creek Lake from Cedar Hill in 2006 and says joining the radio club “was the launching point in my ham career.”
Ligon is based in Gun Barrel City and is the radio club’s vice president. He owns Gun Barrel Computers and he and his wife, Judy, manage the nearby Lakeridge RV Park.
“Watching my ham friends give their time and effort to help other hams has been a blessing and has taught me how to live my life,” Wells says. “As a community, ham radio operators give so much and expect so little in return.”
The club has a group called ARES, which stands for Amateur Radio Emergency Services. “In the event there is an emergency, we will gather together on the air,” Ligon says. “We do a lot of storm spotting for the National Weather Service (NWS).” The weather service’s Fort Worth office has a link to club members and gets confirmation on the radio, Ligon adds. “We’re their eyes on the ground.”
Wells coordinates the weather coverage, Ligon says, with NWS listening to the ARES repeater to get first-hand information. “He’ll (Wells) send emails out, most of the time we have advanced notice there’ll be dangerous weather coming,” according to Ligon. “We’re (the club) pretty much on standby when we get those kind of reports.”
Ligon continues, “We’re on the air and have some people who are mobile. We can have as many as 20 on the air and maybe a dozen or half a dozen that are mobile. If needed, I can jump in my truck and go anywhere in the area. We usually have four or five that are stationed out in inclement weather.”
As a recent example, Ligon says tornadic activity in the Metroplex in December would be something that would spur the club into action. “Should that happen here, we’d be right on top of it,” Ligon says.
CCARC meets the second Saturday of every month at 10 a.m. at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Gun Barrel City. The public is welcome to attend, Ligon says.