Messages of Thanks from Ukraine

The receivers sent last December and January have arrived safely and have been distributed. There are still at least two packages in transit and another on my kitchen counter waiting to go out.

First:

Good afternoon! Reporting on the radio Yesterday we distributed 27 receivers in the villages. People were very pleased, because it is expensive for old people to buy such a device. They cost about $20 right now. For the village, this is a lot of money. The remaining 13 radios I gave to my friend Anton (he is on video). He works for the International Medical Corps and often visits front-line villages, where there is no communication or electricity at all. He will distribute radio in such places. Give Paul a huge, huge thank you from the old folks! Here is a video from yesterday’s trip https://t.me/yukhnovets_r/813 I see on the application that one package has not yet arrived. I’m waiting for it and I’ll write to you right away Dyakuyu!❤️

Followed by:

Returned from the villages The ground froze again, so we reached all the addresses. In addition to the reinforced food package, they brought radios to the old people, which Paul sent from the USA, for which many thanks to him! This is really a super important thing in a permanent blackout. Most of the radio was distributed, Anton will take the rest to the de-occupied villages of the Kharkov region Grandmother Katya timidly asked me to find some scraps of boards for her so that she could put together a shed and start chickens in the spring. Her past farm was completely burned down. Let’s make her a shed for sure Grandfather Pasha, like a child, was delighted with the radio. His last receiver fell and stopped working. Now he will follow the news from the front around the clock Two grandmothers of a neighbor were more impressed not by the opportunity to listen to the news, but by music radio stations. We will, he says, dance both in the hut and in the garden in the spring Grandmother Vera from Bervitsy cooked zrazy with cabbage for our arrival, grandmother Raya from Mokrets made dumplings with liver, and Nadezhda Ivanovna from Grebelki baked pies with apple and poppy seeds. Everything is very tasty. If someone needs recipes – write. Next time I will ask for you Galina Nikolaevna’s son came from the front. Just for a day, but even from this she cheered up and rejuvenated Grandfather Grisha fulfilled the order and cured his grandmother in a week. We met in a good mood and were touched for a long time, looking at the photo of Polina. In general, all the old people are waiting for her and Marusya to visit in the spring, they worry during the shelling of Kyiv as if they were relatives Nadezhda Ivanovna and aunt Olya also recovered. feel good Orthodox crosses are painted on every door in the houses. This priest went to the huts of old people at baptism We delivered another batch of products, took lists of necessary medicines for the next week in three villages, conveyed greetings from you to everyone Minus 340 days of war, which means we are 340 days closer to Victory Everything will be Ukraine!

We raised enough money to send 100 of these little AM/FM radios to Ukraine, plus one AM/FM/LW/SW set for the medical organization. I would like to thank everyone who donated generously to the cause.

Video

We also sent along several large bottles of Ibuprofen, multi-vitamins and many packages of seeds for springtime vegetable gardens.

It is really important that we remember these people and what they are going through. When I see pictures and videos like this, it strengthens my resolve; we cannot let the sociopathic bullies win.

Radios for Ukraine

Firefighters work at a site of a thermal power plant damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kharkiv, Ukraine September 11, 2022. Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS – THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY.

After having a nice Thanksgiving meal with my family, I was sitting around thinking about all the events in Ukraine. The situation over there is getting more desperate with each passing day. The wholesale destruction of the power grid is unfathomable to those of us sitting in our warm houses with full stomachs. It seems like these attacks will continue throughout the winter, which is charming.

With that in mind, I asked around with some people I know; would battery-powered radios help out? I was thinking about after any natural disaster here, most often battery radio is still the go-to source for information during a massive power outage. Where to get food and clean water, locations of warming centers, where to get medical treatment or just news in general. This is especially true if mobile data and internet service is affected. All of those things are currently happening in some areas of Ukraine. The short answer is; definitely YES! In fact, what was said was that for small villages and settlements, the need for small radios like this is urgent. Power restoration often happens first in large cities and settlements, while less settled areas can go for many days or perhaps weeks without power.

A little more research shows that the AM and FM bands in Ukraine are similar to ours with two exceptions; AM channels are spaced at 9 kHz and FM frequencies end in both odd and even numbers e.g. 96.0 MHz. Thus, radios need to be constant-tuning analog types. Other good features; small size and long battery life. Amazon has several models of radios in the 9-12 dollar range that run on two AA batteries. Something like this:

Portable radio

Along with a four or six-pack of AA batteries.

The next question is; how to get those radios from here to there? Knowing several people from that part of the world, I understand that care must be taken to ensure that the radios are not stolen in transit. I believe we have that sorted out. I have sent the first batch of 30 radios with batteries over. I should have confirmation of arrival in the next week or so. In the meantime, I have set up a GoFundMe campaign to send more portable radios over:

GoFundMe: Radios for Ukraine

If you would like to participate, any donation would be welcome. All funds (less the Go Fund Me fees) will be used to send portable radios and batteries to people in Ukraine.

UPDATE: So far, we have received about $730.00 from the GoFundMe campaign. All of the donations are highly appreciated! I have sent another shipment of radios off and there is another one on order.

Inexpensive, portable radios

As time and funds allow, I plan on sending about 80 radios by early January.

Disinformation and Shortwave radio

I came across an interesting article on the Engineering and Technology website:

How to defeat disinformation with short-wave radio

The takeaway is this:

“When you’re in an environment where infrastructure has been damaged, where transmission towers have been destroyed or where the power supply to the transmission equipment isn’t reliable and robust, such as some parts of Ukraine, then you end up with a fallback to older equipment, such as battery-powered radios,”

Griffiths, Sarah. “How to Defeat Disinformation with Short-Wave Radio.” RSS, The Institute of Engineering and Technology, 9 Nov. 2022, https://eandt.theiet.org/content/articles/2022/11/how-to-defeat-disinformation-with-short-wave-radio/.

That applies not only to war zones but also to natural disasters or other situations where widespread disruptions occur in communications or power distribution networks.

The article focuses mainly on the BBC’s efforts to get information to Ukrainians who may be listening on shortwave radios in occupation zones. That is an effective use of shortwave radio, to be sure. One problem with this idea; if there are no regularly used shortwave frequencies in the affected areas, who will have access to a shortwave radio? There may be a few receivers around in any given community, but the vast majority of people will not have access to them. The idea that a broadcast service can be neglected for years if not decades, then be quickly dusted off and put into use is simply not realistic. This applies to AM and FM radio as well.

Material safety at Transmitter Sites

Recently, while working at a transmitter site built in the early 1940’s I noticed some fluorescent lights were out. Upon closer examination, I noticed that the bi-pin holder on one side of the bulb was damaged. This led to the removal of the fixture for repair, discovering these devices:

General Electric PCB Fluorescent lamp ballast

As this was made in Schenectady, NY, it is almost certainly original to the building. According to the EPA website, each one of these ballasts contains a capacitor with 3-4 ounces of PCB. There were 16 total fixtures, each with one ballast. The ballasts were removed and the fluorescent lamps were replaced with T8 120 Volt LED units. Any defective bi-pin lamp holders were replaced at the same time.

The danger posed by PCBs is minimal unless they leak or there is a fire. Partially burned PCB results in the production of dioxins, which are really bad. The old GE ballasts were properly disposed of.

The PCB capacitors and transformers were removed from the site many years ago. Other things that might have PCBs; are caulking and window glazing compounds.

That made me think; what else is around here? Several things came to mind.

Fluorescent bulbs waiting for disposal

The fluorescent bulbs themselves contain a small amount of mercury. This is not a problem unless the bulb breaks. If the bulb does break, the EPA recommends leaving the room for 15-20 minutes. Then carefully clean up the broken glass and place it in a plastic bag. Smaller particles can be cleaned up with the sticky side of masking tape or duct tape. Do not use a regular vacuum to clean up the broken glass, this will spray mercury around the room.

The fluorescent bulbs should be disposed of as hazardous waste.

Hot water pipes with lagging (insulation)

Asbestos lagging on the hot water/heating pipes. As long as the lagging is intact, there is no problem. All of the pipe lagging in this building is intact and in good shape. With asbestos, the problems start when things are disturbed. Any type of work on those pipes will require a mitigation plan. Something to keep in mind if there are any building modifications being planned.

If old-style pipe lagging like this is falling off or has been partially removed, it is best to have an asbestos survey done. Newer style lagging will be either closed cell foam, open cell foam, or fiberglass insulation with a cardboard cover.

Other things that can have asbestos are floor tiles and siding.

Halon fire supression system

The halon fire suppression system can be hazardous if one is in the building when it discharges. Of course, fire itself is also a hazard. It is something to be aware of if the alarm goes off.

Peeling paint

Since this building was constructed way before 1978, lead paint is likely on the walls. Not a huge problem unless it is chipping off and you accidentally eat the lead paint chips or inhale pulverized lead paint dust. To clean these up, use a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter. Alternatively, wear a HEPA filter and use a dustpan and brush. Do not use a regular vacuum cleaner.

If building modification work is being done in areas that may contain lead paint, a properly certified lead paint mitigation contractor should be hired to remove the hazardous material.

None of these situations pose a direct safety threat, however, one should be aware of these potential issues in their work environment.