Ham radio volunteers test emergency communications in Warrior Park during storm

During a recent storm in Western Kern County, volunteers with the Western Kern County Amateur Radio Emergency Service ran a practice exercise in Warrior Park to test radio communications that can operate if power or internet are lost, Micah Martin said.

"We activated because of the weather," said Micah Martin, public information officer for Hitachi Amateur Radio, explaining that the group was running through a basic check-in script to confirm local conditions and establish communications with area repeaters.

The drill aimed to verify whether operators could reach county-level emergency command even if local infrastructure failed, Martin said. He read a standard check-in that included a call sign and location — "K N 6 VUT, Tehachapi" — and reported local conditions: "Temperature, 34 degrees. Visibility, 3 miles. 100% cloud cover. Wind is west southwest, 11 miles per hour." Those routine weather and status reports help emergency nets track conditions across a broad area, he said.

Martin demonstrated the handheld radio used for the exercise and described how it connects to antenna repeaters. "This is what we use for line of sight, communications or to get on to our antenna repeaters that rebroadcast around the entire area," he said, adding that repeaters extend coverage to Pine Mountain, Frasier Park, Ridgecrest and back to Bakersfield, which serves as the ARES command for the county.

The operators emphasized the practical value of the exercise: if power or internet go down, amateur radio provides a redundant communications path to coordinate responders and share situational updates. Martin said the group activated specifically because of the weather and went through scripted check-ins to confirm roads, infrastructure and local conditions as part of standard procedure.

Martin also invited interested residents to join the club. He said the group meets at the Police Department on the second Thursday of every month at 7 p.m., and hosts casual get-togethers on Wednesdays at 1:00 at Taco Sandwich on Tatoo Boulevard. "If someone wanted to join the Ham Radio Club out here, get involved, how would they do that?" the interviewer asked; Martin described the meeting schedule and locations as the route for new participants.

The on-site demonstration underscored local volunteer capacity for emergency communications during weather incidents and served as outreach to residents interested in joining local amateur radio activities. The interview ended with the interviewer thanking Martin for his time.