NOAA All Hazards Radio has been around since 1960. I have a Midland Weather Radio receiver in my house because we live in a rural area. We certainly do have weather events; Severe Thunderstorms being the most common. We have also had Tornados, Floods, Hurricanes, Winter Storms and Blizzards. It is useful to have, especially when the cell phone and/or public network go down.
That system operates on the same frequencies and manner as the NOAA All Hazards Radio system.
It appears that the Canadian government is discontinuing service as of March 16, 2026 and replacing it with an app. That seems short sighted to me; I don’t know how many users of Weather Radio Canada there are, but I’d bet there are quite a few. It also assumes that everyone in Canada has a smart phone. Given the economy and the expense of a new iPhone (or Android), I think this is far from the case.
Nautel NG1000 NOAA transmitter
I did get thinking about what would happen here if the NOAA system went away. Could the Emergency Alert System still get reliable local alerts out over the air? I know that most of the radio and TV stations in this area still monitor the NOAA frequencies as a third source for local activations. Over the years, EAS activation for things like Tornado Warnings has saved quite a few lives, especially out in the mid west.
The weather affects many things. When the weather improves, outdoor projects like tower work can be completed. When the weather is terrible, we may need to do extra work restoring broadcast signals. Today, I am looking at Hurricane Lee, in the North Atlantic basin. Historically speaking, September is the month when we get Hurricanes in the Northeast.
As of this writing, it is too early to be concerned about Lee. Hurricanes can be very unpredictable and there is a good chance the forecast will change many times over the next week or so. That being said, this time of year is a good time to call the fuel companies and top off the generator tanks since winter is coming in a few months anyway. As the situation develops, I may need to dust off the pre-storm checklist.
The basic pre-storm checklist looks something like this:
96 hours or more before the storm: Schedule fuel deliveries for generators, and top off oil and water as needed. Test generators under load if possible. Check UPS batteries. Make an off-site data backup if it does not already exist.
72 hours before the storm: Coordinate with programming to have backup programs available in the event that the satellite dish is damaged, the internet goes down, etc. Inventory and restock PPE, emergency food, water, blankets, first aid supplies, batteries, etc.
48 hours before the storm: Procure supplies needed to secure buildings and sites (plywood, tarps, sandbags, rope, nails, screws, etc). Work out backups for internet STL systems if possible. Work on access plans to remote sites. Make sure that you have the proper tools available.
24 hours before the storm: Secure your personal dwelling, and make sure you have a plan for pets and loved ones. Secure proper shelter for everyone. Fill vehicle gas tanks, and fill portable gas tanks. Update off-site data backup and secure in a safe location.
12 hours before the storm: Secure buildings, park vehicles in areas where they will not be damaged by flooding or blowing debris, and make any last-minute supply runs for emergency food and water. Have a set or two of dry clothes and shoes in your vehicle (almost nothing is worse than spending 12-24 hours in wet and cold clothes). Coordinate response with other station personnel, prioritize the order of restoration, and coordinate with local authorities on their needs.
A few years ago, I purchased one of these LiPo battery chain saws:
DeWalt battery chain saw
These are great units because you do not have to carry cans of 2-cycle gas around. This model will cut trees 12-14 inches in diameter and I get about 25-35 minutes of cutting time per battery depending on the motor load. I have used it several times to cut small trees from access roads to tower sites.
Above all else, during and after the storm, be safe. Do not take any risks involving downed wires, damaged towers, satellite dishes, etc.
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.
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:
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.
