AmRRON: T-REX 2022, Sept. 9-11

The timeline is set, the inject traffic and initiating stations are in place, and hundreds of operators are making final preparations of their gear.

As in years past, this year’s scenario-based nationwide exercise is based on a cyber attack. But there will be more!

For most participants, this makes the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, or more T-REX exercises they’ve participated in. Each time, more is learned, tested, and previous experience applied. We all grow and become better radio operators for it. But we take it for granted that this might be the first time for many of the new members who have joined AmRRON over the past year or more. Apologies! We will help prepare the newer folks much farther in advance in the future, as we’ve done in the past.

WHAT IS T-REX?

It is a three-day (actually, 48 hours) scenario-based disaster preparedness exercise, from Friday, September 9th, through Sunday at Noon, Pacific time, September 11th (non-stop). All participants cuts commercial power, internet, cell phone, satellite, and any other conventional communications methods and simulates a nationwide grid-down emergency.

TIME: Beginning Friday at Noon Pacific time (1pm Mountain; 2pm Central; 3pm Eastern; 1900 Zulu).

It is an opportunity for you as an individual, or family, or preparedness group, church disaster relief ministry, militia, or organization to practice implementing your worst-case emergency preparedness plan. Cook with your off-grid equipment, power your batteries with your solar panels, test out alternative lighting, play a board game with your family by lantern and no electronics, practice your bugout plan, etc.

But most importantly, it’s an opportunity for you to practice using your emergency communications skills and equipment. Make mistakes, learn shortcomings, capabilities and limitations, and identify where you need to make improvements (and you will, each time you do an exercise). Take it seriously, but have fun!

WHAT WILL ACTUALLY HAPPEN DURING THE EXERCISE?

Initially, each SIGCEN (Signals Center) and NCS (Net Control Station) will produce and send an Initial Event Summary. In a real-world event, radio operators will be taking to the airwaves to find out exactly what has happened, and how widespread are the effects. They will inherently be looking to Net Control Stations for answers and guidance. The Initial Event Summary is a tool we use to convey what we know at the moment, at the onset of an event, as well as guidance and instructions such as reminders of when the next scheduled net is to take place, and what frequency and mode, etc.

Also, this year there are 38 pieces of preloaded radio traffic (we call ‘injects’) which was developed and distributed to over twenty volunteer Initiating Stations across the country. Nine of those are welfare traffic requests, such as someone requesting a check on a loved one in another state, for example.

Each Inject that was issued included a set of instructions for each Initiating Station, including when to ‘inject’ their radio traffic into the scenario. This helps enhance the timeline and the scenario with realistic messages, reports, and developments which might occur in logical fashion in a real-world emergency. Net Control Stations will direct traffic to help keep the nets running smoothly, and will facilitate getting radio traffic to their destinations. Tuning in to the nets will help you gain an understanding of the size, scope, and impact of the disaster.

Each piece of traffic is assigned a three-digit training exercise control number, or Traffic ID number. And each Inject Station is assigned a two-digit Station ID number. This helps us track official exercise traffic so we can understand the effectiveness of the nets, identify shortcomings, and track the successful delivery of the traffic.

Some traffic is for wide distribution, for everyone’s situational awareness. Some wide distribution traffic pertains to specific communities, or regions, and is not intended for all nationwide participants. For example, a church setting up a soup kitchen at the American Baptist Church on 123 Merry Lane, Smallville, USA, would only pertain to the people in that community. It wouldn’t pertain to someone a thousand miles, and five states away. On the other hand, foreign military forces landing on the shores of the east coast, the west coast, and crossing the Mexican border would pertain to everyone on the North American continent — when wide distribution means WIDE distribution.

The SIGCENs (Signals Centers) on the east and west coasts will be compiling reports as they are receiving them from NCSs, and others, and compiling consolidated SITREPs (Situation Reports), or Intelligence Briefs, etc. Those are generally for wide distribution intended for all parties with the ability to receive radio signals.

Keep notes for ideas on how to improve your personal situation. As you receive information over the air, and you learn of some of the events taking place, use the opportunity to discuss with your family or group, ‘what would we do, or how would we respond, if this were real’?

YOU GET TO TRANSMIT. One of the first things an NCS is going to try to do is take a ‘pulse check’ to find out who is out there on the air, who else is affected, in what ways, how far reaching the effects are, and what does he not yet know, but should. We use the STATREP (Status Report) as a tool to provide a formatted method for each radio operator to report the status at their location. As each station reports his/her Status Report, others will be able to see those reports as well. The NCS will use the information from these STATREPs to update his Initial Event Summary to fill in any gaps on what he didn’t know beforehand.

Be prepared to submit your STATREP if you are properly licensed to transmit on the Amateur Radio bands. This pertains to both HF and local VHF/UHF frequencies. USE THE ABBREVIATED STATREP. AmRRON operators will find guidance on how to format their STATREPs on Page 37 of the AmRRON Signals Operating Instructions, Section 6.3.1 — the ‘Abbreviated STATREP‘.

YOU ARE GRID DOWN DURING T-REX, and your STATREP should reflect that. Your STATREP should indicate that, at minimum, you are without commercial power and all conventional communications (phone/internet).

This can be done over voice (aka. phone) or using ham digital modes, such as JS8Call, FSQCall, or fldigi modes such as Contestia 4-250. Follow the instructions of NCS. For most AmRRON operators, this is a walk in the park. We practice this regularly.

What is different about T-REX nets versus regularly-scheduled practice nets?

TRAFFIC. Ensuring important traffic (especially Priority or Immediate/Emergency traffic) gets passed. This is the primary difference.

In a real-world emergency, unless there is not business (traffic) to attend to, taking check-ins for the sake of filling a list of callsigns is the lowest priority. Generally, AmRRON nets become ‘Traffic Nets’ for the purpose of moving important, time sensitive, or lifesaving information.

Net Control will likely announce himself, including his name and location, and then announce any traffic he has for the net, including the precedence level of the traffic. Then:

A. He will (should) ask for another station to act as an Assitant NCS (ANCS). The ANCS helps relay traffic to others which may not have a good path to Net Control, and he can step up to take over the net if something happens to NCS (like, if NCS vanishes — it happens — computers crash, generators run out of fuel, dogs chase the neighbor cat, etc.).

B. First, he will ask if there is any Immediate (or Emergency) traffic for the net. He may take the traffic directly, if appropriate, or he may facilitate getting the Priority traffic relayed on to its destination.

C. Then he will send any traffic he has for the net, beginning with Priority traffic.

D. If a station announces he has directed traffic, NCS will then try to identify a station at, or close to, the destination. For example. If NCS is in Missouri and a Station from Texas calls announcing he has traffic that needs to go to Montana, NCS will tell him to stand by and ask if there are any Montana station on frequency. If nothing heard, he may ask for stations in states surrounding Montana to check in who can relay the traffic. An Idaho station responds, offering to take the traffic, and who will work with others in the region to get the traffic to its destination. NCS will then direct the Texas and Idaho stations to move up, or down, three to six kilohertz and exchange traffic. if they do not have a direct path to each other, then the ANCS can move with them, and relay the traffic between them, clearing the main net frequency as soon as possible. ANCS will return to the net frequency as soon as the relay is finished. If there are no stations at or near the destination, the NCS can take the traffic and pass it along using other means after the net closes.

E. Other NCSs from adjacent regions should announce themselves on a net, so the primary NCS knows they are there, and can relay net traffic to them which is intended for their region.

To help keep the scheduled nets from becoming congested, any stations with directed traffic should try to use the Persistent Presence Net to find other stations who might be able to relay the traffic toward its destination. All stations should keep a log of who you sent traffic to, and who you received traffic from. If it gets lost or disappears during the exercise, this will help in tracking it down and learning what happened to it, and why, so we can remedy any shortfalls.

However, since many stations have limited alternate power (perhaps a single RV battery and a small solar panel), it may not be viable for them to be on the air continually. This is why we have regularly scheduled nets listed in the SOI, creating a time window when as many stations as possible can meet on the air to exchange traffic. Scheduled nets is also when wide distribution traffic from AmRRON will be sent.

IF YOU HAVE NO HF CAPABILITIES:

This is a shortcoming you MUST overcome. Get a shortwave radio receiver with SSB capability, or an SDR dongle, if nothing else. You must have the ability to receive information from outside your immediate area if repeaters are rendered inoperable. You must be able to inform your community if there is a radiation cloud, lava, zombies, langoliers, or foreign military convoys bearing down on you from the next state over.

IF YOU HAVE A LOCAL VHF/UHF, GMRS, CH3 COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK BUT NO INJECT TRAFFIC:

Develop your own ‘micro scenarios’ which fit your community, but which go along with the larger nationwide scenario. You’re already a leader, so organizing some training scenarios which provide opportunities to use your communications networks should be right down your alley!

AmRRON is a patriot-oriented network, not an anti-government network. So, do not create micro scenarios which project an adversarial relationship between your local group and government officials or political groups.

But share your small group training experiences as well. What worked, what didn’t, overall impressions and experiences, and areas you’ve identified as needing improvement, and solutions to address the shortcomings revealed during the exercise.

Keep a list of the traffic you receive over the course of the exercise! There will be a survey that will be used to create several after action reports (something we did not get to complete last year).

AmRRON T-REX Moved to September, 2022

AmRRON has announced that their annual end of the world as we know it radio communication readiness exercise will be moved from July to September this year. Put it on your calendar, now, as you have four months to get your radio ready and practice up.

The annual nationwide, scenario-based, simulated grid down communications exercise is set for:
Friday, Saturday, and Sunday — September 9th, 10th, and 11th
The scenario is being developed and the goals and objectives are being defined.
In the coming days and weeks, expect:

More details about the exercise and the scenario
List of training goals and objectives, and skillsets which will be focused on during the exercise
Request for volunteers as Initiating Stations to inject message traffic into the scenario
Roles of participants and format of the exercise
Preparatory training exercises which will focus on specific skills, tasks, and procedures to help prepare participants for T-REX 2022

In the meantime:

Continue to improve your radio station, off-grid power capabilities, and skillsets
Continue to familiarize yourself with the AmRRON Signals Operating Instructions
Participate in as many regularly-scheduled training nets as possible

AmRRON: T-REX “News” 2019 Continues

AmRRON continues to release TEOTWAWKI Readiness Exercise (T-REX) 2019 related news. You can find the T-REX news page here. The active exercise begins on July 26th. This post will be updated as additional exercise/drill news is published.

25 July 2019 EXERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE AmCON
QST QST ALL AmRRON OPERATORS… Commercial power and telecommunications failure is imminent, and expected within the next three to six hours. nsur uo s S. I. n net ss reor.

25 July 2019 EXERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE*** Liberty State Beacon – Early this morning, the Securities Exchange Commission announced a bank holiday effective at the end of the business day. Additionally, all U.S. stock exchanges will be closed until Monday, July 29 at 9:00 Eastern. This comes as more ATM’s are now offline across the nation and law enforcement in several cities report an increased call load as customers make a run on banks.EXERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE***

20190725 – 1500z EXERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE*****AmRRON Readiness Condition has been raised to Level 2. Due to the pervasive cyber attacks on major infrastructure, coupled with increasingly widespread telecommunications and power systems failures, the AmRRON Network is preparing to activate.Persistent presence nets are in place by multiple volunteer radio operators on the HF bands. SIGCENs are mobilizing, either already establishing on-air presence or preparing for operations.
-Have plenty of cash on hand
-Store up on water and if able to do so safely, make last-minute purchases of perishable items, fuels, batteries, etc.
-If you have not been participating in on-air radio practice session, do so immediately.
-Be prepared to have your communications operational within the next 12 hours.
-Avoid metropolitan areas, public transit, and venues with crowds. -Avoid traveling beyond your vehicle’s fuel capacity to make your way safely home or other safe location.EXERCISE EXERCISE*****

*** EXERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE

AmRRON TREX19*** 20190725 – 1500z

Early this morning, several nuclear facilities throughout the US report cyber-attacks on their PLCs and resultant reactor “scrams”. These attacks were accompanied by widespread internet outages and cell phone service lost in several regions on the country.

EXERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE***

24 July 2019 EXERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE*** Liberty State Beacon – In a press release earlier today from the Securities Exchange Commission, authorities announced they were still working to restore all brokerage accounts after Monday’s lockdown. While they are working diligently to resolve the problem an immediate resolution has not been identified and may require a shutdown of financial activity on the NYSE and other commodity exchanges. Across the world, financial exchanges are reacting to the announcement with record losses. Currency exchanges are fluctuating and the dollar is down by 40%. In other news, sources near a nuclear power plant in Georgia report rumors of a reactor “scram” as a result of a failed PLC and false data. Officials from the plant indicate they had some unusual readings and shut the plant down for recalibration but there is no immediate danger to the public. They expect the system to be operational again within 48 hours. Additionally in the East, power plants remain at reduced power output. Several South Eastern cities are having intermittent internet outages and Cell phone companies have announced that several of their regional hubs have been hit by a cyber-virus. EXERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE***

EXERCISE**** ***EXERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE***** Due to the threats to the recently reported cyber attacks on banking and infrastructure computer systems, we are raising the AmCON to Level-4. There is an increased risk to the telecommunications grid across the United States. Inventory all communications gear, update software, print reference documents, and participate in all scheduled AmRRON nets to ensure your station is ready for service. EOM EXERCISE EXERCISE*****

AmRRON Intelligence Brief (AIB) 23 July 2019 Current AmCON: Level 5
*** EXERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE ***** 1. SEC announcement – NYSE and Chicago mercantile will delay opening for 2 hours to address cyber security measures. News reports of several brokerages are locked out of some of their accounts and are aggressively pursuing a solution. They urge clients to remain calm and not try and access their accounts until they announce a fix. Many ATM’s remain inaccessible. 2. News reports of several AEP power plants have experienced turbine failures due to PLC problems. They are rectifying the problem but will have to shut down operations for 72 hours. Expected brownouts and intermittent power outages are expected through the Mid-Atlantic states to include Metropolitan Washington D.C. and Baltimore areas. ***** EXERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE *****

23 July 2009 EXERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE*** Liberty State Beacon – Earlier today, multiple inside sources reported repeated attacks into commercial and private computer systems by an unconfirmed nation state. One of these sources, going by the code name “Big Al”, indicated a mutating computer virus has infected computer systems across the nation. “Big Al” reportedly works for a large bank in the IT Watch Center and has proof of this worm. He indicates that teams are in place to eradicate the worm but by the time they identify the virus, it has mutated and cloned itself to prevent eradication. Big Al stated that people should do everything they can to have cash on hand because things were going to become very bad, very soon. END T-REX TRAFFIC***

23 July 2009 Exercise,Exercise,Exercise
///MSG/// Disruptions to railroad operators computer systems have disruptions to the national rail industry. Operators have assigned personnel to manually operate switches along key rail lines but trains running these routes are forced to move at a much slower pace for safety purposes.Exercise, Exercise, Exercise. ///END OF MSG//
22 July 2009 Exercise,Exercise,Exercise

///MSG/// Liberty State Beacon – Today the Securities Exchange Commission announced both the New York Stock Exchange and the Chicago Mercantile will delay opening for two hours to address cyber security measures. Sources internal to several brokerages report numerous locked accounts and are aggressively pursuing a solution. Clients of these brokerages are urged to remain calm and delay access to accounts until a fix is announced. In a press release from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Chairman Maury Fifer promises the public that “everything is stable and not to do anything rash.” Mr. Fifer wants to remind the public that large withdraws from banks will only create more panic and lead to further instability. Patriot sources urge the public to have plenty of cash on hand as a reserve.Exercise, Exercise, Exercise. ///END OF MSG//
15 July 2009 Exercise,Exercise,Exercise-Traffic .

///MSG/// The Department of Homeland Security has issued a warning advising all commercial and public internet users to be vigilant for possible cyber intrusion into commercial cyber controllers, Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs), and internet servers. All commercial and public internet users are advised to review the following document: https://ics-cert.us-cert.gov/content/overview-cyber-vulnerabilities
Exercise, Exercise, Exercise. ///END OF MSG//

AmRRON: T-REX “News” Has Begun

AmRRON has released the first TEOTWAWKI Readiness Exercise (T-REX) 2019 related news. You can find the T-REX news page here. The active exercise begins on July 26th, but you can expect escalating drill news to be released periodically, ramping up to the main event.

15 July 09 Exercise,Exercise,Exercise-Traffic .
///MSG/// The Department of Homeland Security has issued a warning advising all commercial and public internet users to be vigilant for possible cyber intrusion into commercial cyber controllers, Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs), and internet servers. All commercial and public internet users are advised to review the following document: https://ics-cert.us-cert.gov/content/overview-cyber-vulnerabilities
Exercise, Exercise, Exercise. ///END OF MSG//

Here is some background for this year’s T-REX:

This years T-REX is primarily centered around a cyber attack on PLC’s (programmable logic controllers). These small devices provide computer control of many of our industrial and infrastructure mechanical devices. You may remember the “STUXNET” virus that struck Iran’s nuclear program. The virus attacked PLC’s that controlled the speed of uranium centrifuges and caused them to spin out of control resulting in failure and damage to the centrifuges. It is hypothesized that the STUXNET virus was introduced into the Iranian computers through a compromised USB drive.

In addition to the cyber attack on the PLC’s, this T-REX will incorporate other types of cyber attacks into commercial infrastructure and ATM’s, medical devices and communications services.

The following link will give a good overview on how to prevent cyber intrusion into infrastructure devices and is worth reading. Overview of Cyber Vulnerabilities

Recommended Reading: Countdown to Zero Day: Stuxnet World’s First Digital Weapon
VPN- NORD VPN

AmRRON T-REX 2019 Save the Date, July 26-28

The 2019 TEOTWAWKI Readiness Exercise will be held over the weekend of July 26 through 28. Save the date now to save yourself later. The AmRRON T-REX is a radio communication disaster exercise, but you can follow along with the disaster scenario even if you don’t have a radio. (Click here to see the 2018 T-REX archives.) For AmRRON and its members, the exercise is a functional to full-scale exercise. If you wish to participate on your own with your local group, you can work it as a walk-through, tabletop, or more as you see fit.

AmRRON T-REX Radio Traffic

Following are some messages received via amateur radio for the AmRRON readiness exercise. Errors are as received.

**EXERCISE***EXERCISE***EXERCISE**

a DRINKING WATER RESEVOIR IN SUTHERLIN OR HAS BEEN CONTAMINATED, THERE ARE DEAD ANIMALS IN THE WATER.

SAN FRANCISCO – ONLY THOSE WITH ALTERNATE POWER ARE OK.

***EXERCISE***

***EXERCISE***EXCERCISE***EXERCISE*** THERE HAS BEEN A CYBER ATTACK TO THE POWER INFESTRUCTURE NATIONWIDE. POWER WILL BE SPORATIC FOR THE FORSEEABLE FUTURE. INFECTIOUS DISEASE HAS HIT OREGON. THE DISEASE IS SPREADING FROM ANIMALS TO HUMAN AND VISA VERSA. ALL COMMUNICATIONS OTHER THEN RADIO ARE DOWN. PLEASE CHECK YOUR AMRRON SOI FOR COMMS SCHEDULES AND UPDATES. ***EXERCISE***EXERCISE***EXERCISE***

And here you can find one participant’s after action report for the exercise.

AmRRON T-REX “News” for Drill

The following is made up “news” for the AmRRON readiness exercise being conducted this weekend (July 20-22, 2018).

The Pre-Exercise Breaking News and Pre T-Rex Message Traffic are used as a ‘build up’ to set the T-REX training exercise scenario. We are also providing resources to help you with your preps! We look forward to training with you! The “Grid Down” portion of T-REX 2018 officially begins Friday, July 20th at 1900 zulu.

Note: We will be simulating GRID DOWN for T-REX beginning at 1900z (12:00 noon pacific time). AmRRON Operators will be running practice nets using the Communications Signal Operating Instructions. Hope to see you on the air! 73!

///Exercise Exercise Exercise/// The AmCON level has been raised to level 2 due to overload of emergency systems.
The spread of Disease X has began to result in travel restrictions as the president has declared martial law and brought in the National Guard to provide quarantine in some large cities. Anyone who is planning to relocate to another location should do so immediately as the window of opportunity is closing quickly, possibly already closed depending on your individual location. Public areas and gatherings should be avoided if at all possible. Limit contact with individuals and do not consume meat products that have been obtained within the previous 3-4 months to reduce risk ofcontracting Disease X through the food supply. Avoid meats or use long-term supplies.  NC SIGCEN

2018 AmRRON TEOTWAWKI Readiness Exercise, July 20-22nd

AmRRON’s 2018 TEOTWAWKI Readiness Exercise (T-REx) will be held on the weekend on July 20th – 22nd. This is a nationwide grid-down disaster training exercise.. This will be an emergency communications training exercise with emphasis on Amateur Radio for use during emergency/disaster situations.

Here is a listing of the Pre T-Rex Message Traffic that has been collected from the AmRRON practice nets! The Pre-T-Rex message traffic and the T-Rex Breaking News page are used as a ‘build up’ to the exercise scenario for T-Rex 2018!

EXERCISE // EXERCISE // EXERCISE

20181807022103 // Exercise // Exercise // Exercise // 

Farmers in Pickens County SC report rapid spread of disease among livestock. Many animals have been destroyed as a result. Disease also affecting migratory birds with many found dead county wide. Farmers indicate similar reports from family members in WA/OR/CA. // Exercise // Exercise // Exercise //
end of message

MSG #0714-01-E-P EXERCISE // EXERCISE // EXERCISE

SPECIAL ADVISORY STATEMENT
In a special bulletin transmitted on television and radio, officials from the CDC, DHS, HHS and FEMA issued the following statement: "Our research has concluded that we are entering the 90 - 100 day window where symptoms of disease X, a prion based disease, may be dramatically expanding based on extrapolation from the number of initial cases seen in April and May. In fact, we are seeing an increasing number of cases nationwide bearing this out. With this in mind we have issued the following directives: 
1. Do not travel beyond your local community and do so only when absolutely necessary. TSA, FEMA and members of the Natl Guard are conducting screenings at all transportation hubs and airports. Be advised if you have to travel, expect long waits and mandatory screening.
2. Avoid large gatherings such as sporting events, concerts and malls.
3. If you have symptoms, DO NOT go to the hospital, physicians office or ER.
Call you local public health department and report your symptoms to
them.  Follow their instructions.
The CDC, USAMRIID and researchers are working tirelessly to contain this disease and put mitigation measures in place. Please remain calm and follow the instructions of government officials. Information is being disseminated to local health officials now." EOM EXERCISE // EXERCISE // EXERCISE

MSG #0708-01-E-R EXERCISE // EXERCISE // EXERCISE
Amateur Operator picked up information relayed by WPA ARES net for an additional resource request of (10) isolation kits and (3) additional biologic decontamination units to be dispatched from the State public
health HQ to the University Hospital campus asap. Local news reports out of the Pittsburgh area have stated that an
exclusion zone has been set up around the University Hospital in the downtown area and all non police and emergency vehicle traffic is being diverted. An eyewitnesses states that there are multiple arrivals of medivac helicopters. There is to be a joint public statement by the Allegheny Co EMA and University Hospital PIO at 1800 EDST. EOM EXERCISE // EXERCISE // EXERCISE

MSG #0705-01-E-R EXERCISE // EXERCISE // EXERCISE
SW listener reports that he picked up spanish language SW broadcast discussing disease effecting cattle, goats, sheep and humans in Argentina. Symptoms are consistent with those of "disease X" in the USA. Requests to WHO regarding spread of "disease X" outside of the USA remain unanswered. There are unsubstantiated reports of outbreaks in Canada, New Zealand, Australia and Great Britain. If you have contacts outside of the USA and can verify reports of breakouts in other countries, pse contact AmRRON national with further information. EOM EXERCISE // EXERCISE // EXERCISE

T-REX Breaking News

The Pre-Exercise Breaking News and Pre T-Rex Message Traffic are used as a ‘build up’ to set the T-REX training exercise scenario. We are also providing resources to help you with your preps! We look forward to training with you! T-REX 2018 officially begins Friday, July 20th at 1900 zulu.

>>07/17/18 Executive Summary AmRRON NC SICGEN | AmRRON Piedmont Triad<<

7/16/18 21:00
Exercise // Exercise // Exercise
Several alternative media sights are reporting that due to the supply shortages, many Sams Club, Costco, Kroger and Safeway store in IL, MO, MN, NE, AR, LA, CO and UT are limiting quantities of beef, poultry, and pork that can be purchased in a single order. Corporate representatives for these chains deny any knowledge of supply problems and are unaware of any stores instituting transaction limits.

Precautionary measures:
Stock up on food and supplies due to possible supply problems.  
Take steps to make sure your universal preparedness prepping supplies are stocked up.
Examples: Nitrile Gloves, Disposable gown, hair cover, eye cover, mask (N95 or better yet N100 with pink filters)!
In the event we go grid down, monitor during the net times indicated in the Communcations S.O.I.

7/16/18 00:00
Exercise // Exercise // Exercise
Federal authorities have reportedly destroyed the entire livestock heards of several ranches in North Central NE, inducing the Sandhill, Spade, Krebs, Nolles and Haythorn cattle ranches. This represents the destruction of over 500,000 cattle.

Precautionary measures:
Take steps to make sure your universal preparedness prepping supplies are stocked up.
Examples: Nitrile Gloves, Disposable gown, hair cover, eye cover, mask (N95 or better yet N100 with pink filters)!
In the event we go grid down, monitor during the net times indicated in the Communcations S.O.I.

Resources:

CLICK HERE for more information on prepping for a Mandatory Quarantine

T-REX Guidance for Participating Stations

Here is some guidance for participating in T-REX 2018!

1. ///EXERCISE EXERCISE/// Some of the traffic we pass is very
plausible and realistic. Many who stumble across our traffic nets may
not realize we are conducting a training exercise and could believe
there is a real world emergency developing. Always precede and end your
traffic with the disclosure that this is a training net. In voice
modes, say "Exercise Exercise Exercise. The following is traffic for
the T-Rex disaster preparedness exercise of 2018."

And at the end, "... again, this is only a training exercise."

For digital modes, add slants before and after your emergency training
traffic: /// EXERCISE /// or /// TRAINING EXERCISE ///

2. As the Army training adage goes, 'Train hard, fight easy', or 'An
ounce of sweat in training saves a gallon of blood on the
battlefield'. Although we want people to have successes and victories
during training, which builds confidence, we also need to embrace the
'suck' when we're training. Due to the solar cycle and other solar
weather factors, the band conditions are expected to absolutely SUCK!
This is a very real world factor that we could be (and have been) faced
with in real world emergency situations.

Make every reasonable attempt to pass or relay traffic. Use whatever
method or mode you can, as often as you're able, until your traffic gets
passed, or until you receive traffic others are attempting to pass to
you or others. If you are having great difficulty due to band
conditions, DO NOT FREAK OUT, and do not get discouraged. Pass what you
can, when you can. There WILL be traffic that never makes it out of the
gate or never reaches its intended destination. Some of you WILL have
antenna, transceiver, tuner, power, computer, software, etc failures.
Don't sweat it. Work through it the best you can. This is training and
this is designed to reveal shortcomings in your communications
equipment, training, and overall capabilities.

3. DIGITAL MODES WILL RULE THE DAY. If you do not have (at the very
least) digital receiving capabilities, you need to go to www.AmRRON.com
and type 'Digital' in the search box. There are several articles there
to help get you up to speed. The software is free. This is how most
traffic will be passed in this training exercise, and real world
events. It is reliable and gets through when voice does not.

When tuning in to talk or listen, follow the Signals Operating
Instructions.  However, keep in mind that some of the bands may be
unusable due to propagation, sun spot activity, sometimes for hours or
days.  If you cannot hear activity on 20m, wait for the 40m band time
window.  If you cannot copy any activity on 40m after ten minutes,
switch to 80m frequency (applies to both voice and digital time windows). 

If the band has deteriorated and has become unusable, Net Control
Station (NCS) operators should move the nets from 40m to 80m (or from
80m to 40m) after ten minutes of attempting to use the primary band. 
Obviously if the band has deteriorated, the NCS cannot tell everyone to
switch (aka. QSY) to the alternate band.  Each operator should follow
the net and do this on his own.  Remember the rule of thumb -- TEN
MINUTES of no activity?  Then switch!

The AmRRON SOI calls for Contestia 4/250 and MT-631KL for the
standardized digital modes. However, the situation on the ground (in
the air) will often dictate your course of action in a real world
situation. USE WHATEVER MODE GETS THE JOB DONE THE FASTEST! Feel free
to use MFSK 64 (fast), 32 (medium), or 16 (slowest but surest) modes.
The MFSK modes are also best suited for sending images using fldigi.

4. Take good notes about what went well, what did not, and improvements
needed to your station, your equipment, your skills, and your
local/area/regional network.

5. NET CONTROL STATIONS. You are expected to be on the air, but you
won't be alone! There will be six SIGCENs (Signals Centers) with three
to ten operators who are deploying together. They will be coordinating
with other SIGCENs across the country and will be standing by to assist
you. They will also help establish a roster of volunteer stations so
you can have some relief, and they are prepared to step up as Net
Control Stations where gaps are identified. SIGCENs will also be
contacting you to distribute Executive Summaries, News and Information
releases, etc. We're all in this together. We're all patriots. We
all want to help each other succeed, so don't get frustrated and take it
out on others who are trying to come alongside and help you.

6. SIGCENS. You have been requested to provide communications support
by various elements of leadership in your community or region. For some
of you, your local sheriff who does not have an active ARES/RACES group
in his county has asked for help. For others, groups of community
leaders inside and outside government positions have asked you for
assistance with communications to stay informed on regional/national
developments. And for others, the local ARES/RACES groups are
overwhelmed with what needs to be done and you have deployed to augment
communications and fill gaps that the county EOC cannot cover.

In all cases, the SIGCENs' secondary function besides local EMERGENCY
traffic, is to correspond and coordinate with the other AmRRON SIGCENs,
and National SIGCEN, to keep the network informed and connected. DO NOT
NEGLECT THE CH3 COVERAGE, MONITORING, AND TRANSMITTING OF INFORMATION.
There is no other viable system to keep the 'average joe citizen'
connected and informed in a grid down situation. Black Echo
Broadcasting Stations can be a huge asset in many cases.

AmRRON 2017 T-REX, Aug. 11 – 13

MARK YOUR CALENDARS for the 4th annual, Nationwide grid-down disaster training exercise T-Rex! T-Rex 2017 will be from Friday, August 11th- through Sunday, August 13th, 2017. This will be an emergency communications training exercise for AmRRON members with emphasis on Amateur Radio for use during emergency/disaster situations.

WHAT IS T-REX?

It is a nationwide scenario-based disaster preparedness exercise where we simulate that a catastrophic event has caused disruptions and/or failures in conventional services, such as the Power grid, Internet, Telecommunications, Transportation, etc.

It is a chance for you, your family, your group or team, or your organization to practice your emergency preparedness plan, and respond as though it were real.

Most importantly, it is an emergency communications exercise, where AmRRON operators across the country and elsewhere practice tuning in and listening for information and developments, reporting what’s happening in their area, and helping others get radio traffic passed across the network using unconventional communications — mostly Amateur Radio and the most popular digital modes.

WHAT IS THE SCENARIO FOR 2017?

This year we will be simulating a major seismic event, which will actually be TWO catastrophic earthquakes in different parts of the country, three hours apart.

At Noon Pacific time (1900hrs Zulu) the first, 9.1 earthquake strikes off the Pacific coast, followed by a devastating tsunami. This is known as the Cascadia Subduction Zone. Scientists claim we are overdue for a major event on the CSZ and that it is only a matter of when, not if. Power, internet, and telecommunications are lost to the western United States.

At 1700hrs – 5pm – (2200hrs Zulu) the second, 9.2 earthquake strikes in the New Madrid Subduction Zone in eastern Missouri. Power, internet, and telecommunications are lost to the remainder of the United States and two thirds of Canada.

WHAT DO YOU DO?

Plunge yourself into darkness:

Depending on where you are located, turn your cell phone, internet, electricity, etc. off at the time the earthquake occurs (west of Mississippi River = Noon Pacific -or- east of the Mississippi = 5pm Central) aka. 1900Z and 2200z respectively. Most of us have freezers, etc. that we can’t turn off. That’s fine, just don’t use lights, internet, or traditional cooking appliances. Get that dutch oven out, the Coleman lantern, and those two-way radios.

Tune in:

You need to know what’s going on. What is the size and scope the the event? Where is the damage concentrated? What secondary safety hazards have been produced from the disaster? What escape routes are available or closed? Where and when is relief coming? How can I check on my loved ones hundreds of miles away?

Heavy emphasis is placed on emergency communications. Get out your radio and your AmRRON SOI (Signals Operating Instructions) and tune in to the AmRRON Nets.

Click here to continue reading about T-REX at AmRRON.com

Update: AmRRON is posting artificial news stories in support of the exercise narrative to set up the scenario. These can be read at Amrron.com by clicking here.