CUBA: NATIONAL EMERGENCY NETWORK WILL BE ACTIVATED THIS MONDAY, WITH NETWORKS ALREADY ACTIVATED IN EASTERN PROVINCES.

Melissa is now a Category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale. Forecasts indicate it will affect Cuba, especially its eastern region.

Starting at monday noon, the National Emergency Network of the Cuban Radio Amateur Federation (REN-FRC in spanish) will be activated through station CO9DCN, from the National Civil Defense Staff.

Several amateur radio emergency networks have been active in the eastern part of the country for more than 72 hours, according to personal communications we have received from the presidents of the provincial branches of Las Tunas, Granma, and Santiago de Cuba.

In addition to the frequencies established in each municipality for communications on the 2m band, the following national emergency frequencies established in our regulations will be in use:

40m band: 7110 and 7120 kHz.
80m band: 3720 and 3740 kHz.

For this reason, we ask all Cuban and regional radio amateurs, to protect these frequencies, remain listening only, and refrain from transmitting on them unrelated to the emergency.

Cuban radio amateurs, despite the technical and battery difficulties we face, will once again emphasize the importance of radio communications in emergency situations.

For everyone, always, the main recommendation will be to protect their lives and only then maintain communications. 

Carlos Alberto Santamaría González, CO2JC
Coordinator of the National Emergency Network (REN-FRC)