PLACER COUNTY ARES STANDS READY TO SERVE THE CITIZENS of PLACER COUNTY & the STATE OF CALIFORNIA
PLACER COUNTY AMATUER RADIO EMERGENCY SERVICES (PCARES)
We are a volunteer group of communication specialist in the amateur services and other technical areas that train and prepare to offer our services as emergency communicators to the County of Placer. The purpose of the Placer County ARES® Unit is to provide communications support when normal Channels become unreliable or overcrowded and to provide support to agencies to allow the them to decompress. We do this through several organizations such as the American Radio Relay League's ARES® organization (ARRL®) , National Amateur Radio Alliance (NARA)
ARES® may be called upon to provide communications support and other functions during:
Search and Rescue missions.
Provide First Aid at Radio Club Activities such as HamFest, Annual Field Day and other events as needed.
Emergency Operations Center activation during disaster situations.
Situation status reports on flooding and/or severe weather that may impact the County.
Fostering a professional working relationships with other NGO's and Public Safety Agencies.
Continue to enhance our experience through training Communication exercise both local and national.
Emergency Management Operations
Other situations requiring their expertise, as approved.
Placer County ARES® can provide specialized service when called upon such as:
Health & Safety support - PCARES has on staff certified Health & Safety members.
First Aid Standby - PCARES has on staff trained First Aid & CPR members.
Communication support - PCARES has on staff fully trained Communication support specialist.
Incident Command System (ICS)
Placer County ARES® follows the Federal ICS system and the State of California SEMS. A necessary part of our operations is following the tenants of the Incident Command System. To become familiar with ICS, we recommend that each of our members go through an introductory training such as this one offered by FEMA: IS-100.B: Introduction to Incident Command System, ICS-100
Meetings
1st Sunday of the Month*
Placer County ARES® meets on Zoom, all Amateur Radio Operators are welcome. Please have your name and callsign displayed when you log in. The meetings start at 1930 hours (7:30:00 PM) in W6EK Zoom Room courtesy of the Sierra Foothills Amateur Radio Club. Located at www.w6ek.org.
Second Sunday of the Month*
Every Third Sunday of the Month at 1930 hours on the W6EK Repeater located in Auburn frequency of 145.430 MHz with (-) offset, and a PL tone of 162.2. It is also linked to AllStar Link: 51018, EchoLink: 4128, Wires-X: W6EK-2M-ROOM (62545). All members and visitors are encouraged to check-in using this net control script (PDF) for that process. The use of the repeater is by Sierra Foothill Amateur Radio Club in Auburn.
Third Sunday of the Month*
Every Third Sunday of the Month at 1930 hours on the W6EK Repeater located in Auburn frequency of 145.430 MHz with (-) offset, and a PL tone of 162.2. It is also linked to AllStar Link: 51018, EchoLink: 4128, Wires-X: W6EK-2M-ROOM (62545). All members and visitors are encouraged to check-in using this net control script (PDF) for that process. The use of the repeater is by Sierra Foothill Amateur Radio Club in Auburn.
Fourth Sunday of the Month*
Every fourth Sunday of the month we do a Winlink exercise that is determined by the EC. Information is released on to the team. Winlink exercise can be submitted by any means possible (Telnet, RF). This is design to allow teams members test their skills and equipment.
*If that Sunday or Weekend is a holiday, The ARES® net will not meet. We do not want to take away from family holidays
Placer County ARES® uses three different Repeaters for their nets.
Frequency (MHz) Offset (MHz) PL (Hz) Location Repeater Owner
145.430 - 0.600 162.2 Auburn, CA Sierra Foothills Amateur Radio Club
145.130 - 0.600 114.8 Stony Ridge, Auburn, CA Compudigital Industries Currently Off Line
444.475 + 5.00 94.8/94.8 Stony Ridge, Auburn, CA Compudigital Industries Currently Off Line
National Calling Frequency
Some of our members monitor the National Calling Frequency – 146.520 MHz, simplex. If you are not familiar with the National Calling Frequency designation, please check here:
Monthly Hospital Nets
More to Come
Training Events Participation
2025 Building Emergency Area Communications Operations & Networks (BEACON) Exercise
California’s 2025 Tsunami Preparedness Week
2023 Great Shake Out Winlink
Discussion Groups
There is a Placer County ARES® groups.io account for members wishing to be connected. Click here https://groups.io/g/placercountyares
Social Networks
Placer County ARES® Facebook Group
There is a Facebook group for members wishing to be connected there. If you already have an account on Facebook, follow this link to where you will be guided to a request to join the group page. https://www.facebook.com/groups/pcares
If you don't have an account but wish to access this group, go ahead and follow the link also. It bring up the login page for Facebook and from there you may register and create an account for yourself.
The major benefit of this group is help you to be connected with other members who also have Facebook accounts.
Membership
In order to become a member, a candidate must fill out this membership application. Once filled out and signed, please scan it and then email it back to the Placer County ARES® EC at placercountyares@gmail.com. Or click here to fill out the application online.
After which, please send an email to notify us of the pending application. Once your application is received, it will be reviewed by the staff and then forwarded to the Emergency Services Coordinator for final approval.
How to Become A License Amateur Radio Operator
To operate a radio in the amateur radio bands, one would start with getting a "Technician" level license which is obtained by passing an exam.
Here are some several organizations which offer training and testing sessions in our area:
Western Placer Amateur Radio Club offers ham radio license testing on the first Tuesday of each month. Arrive at Round Table Pizza Clubhouse in Rocklin ready to test between 6:00 and 6:30 PM. Our friendly volunteer examiners will greet you and proctor your exam. If you have any questions about the exam session then you may contact Lou by email.
Sierra Foothills Amateur Radio Club offers amateur radio classes to help you get ready to either get a license or upgrade your license at Classes
Contact Us
For more information, you can either join our Sunday evening nets as a visitor and ask questions then or you can send email to Placer County ARES® EC or fill out our Contact Us form