SITREP 01 | Grindstone AmRRON Deployment – Tennessee

While the rest of the world has moved on, the Helene impact zone is still an austere, other-worldly, dystopian environment. There are countless communities which STILL have not been reached. The Grindstone Ministry crews are working tirelessly to get to them.

The AmRRON D-DET (Deployment Detachment) is doing phenomenal work in eastern Tennessee, providing communications in a grid down environment – no power, no cell phones, no internet, and in many areas, no reachable repeater.  More radio operators are scheduled to deploy over the coming weeks. However, the mission is expanding.

While most all current communications needs are being met using UHF/VHF simplex and repeater operations,  remote operations will soon be added which will require HF Digital mode radio to provide a lifeline to the outside world and the FOB.

Although we have scheduled D-DET operators to deploy in the coming weeks, more are needed!

The FOB (Forward Operating Base)

The Grindstone Ministries FOB is ran like an actual military FOB, so it will feel very familiar to many of you. It is mostly veteran ran, with a high-paced tempo, and a no BS, mission focused, and straight up operational environment. It is not for the weak minded or the thin skinned, and where your ego will get put in its place.

If you know you won’t do well in that environment, stay home. This is not T-REX.  It’s another world.

Volunteers who deploy are provided food, water, shelter (bring your own cot and sleeping bag), internet/wifi, and showers at the FOB.

If you want to rise to the occasion and test your mettle in a real-world operating environment, and actually DO what you’ve been training and preparing for, then STEP UP!  You absolutely will walk away from this experience as a better operator, in skills, experience, and character.  Plus, the sense of accomplishment and confidence you will gain from this rare opportunity is priceless.

There is something for everyone!

You think you’re too “old?” Bad knees? Don’t have HF capabilities? You’re “just a Tech” or new? That’s fine too! At the FOB, we need desk operators!  VHF/UHF comms support is the primary mission right now. The comms section (S6) is fully equipped, including base/mobile station and HTs already programmed. We just need licensed operators for those tasks.

The AmRRON Deployment

As you probably already know from the posting, AmRRON Supporting Grindstone Ministries (READ IT, if you haven’t), AmRRON’s assistance was requested directly by Grindstone to provide skilled, experienced radio operators to support their disaster relief efforts in austere, isolated, and highly remote locations where there is no other method of communications.  This IS a disaster area.

Immediately upon receiving the deployment invitation, a WARNORD (Warning Order) was created, describing the mission, the requirements, and the anticipated needs. A call was put out to AmRRON Corps over the Z-Net for first wave volunteers for D-DET Operators and Regional Support Station (RST) volunteers. The WARNORD was issued to the the D-DET personnel, RST personnel, and other AmRRON support staff.

Mission in motion. Foxtrot Quebec-01 would be the Comms Ops Director at the FOB, and Bravo Foxtrot-29 would be the RST Director to coordinate regional support on HF as a lifeline to the remotely operating or inserted operators and teams, from outside the AO.

The missions (envisioned):

Without having boots on the ground, we were only able to anticipate the mission’s needs based on descriptions of the AO (Area of Operations) by the advanced party Grindstone Ministry teams. We weren’t too far off, other than the timeline. While the FOB is grid up (power, water, and internet), there was/is no cell service in the area.  However, just a half a mile away it is a different story altogether. The river had washed out roads and bridges, cutting off mountain communities from any supply lines or access. The closest community, Little Germany, and all those beyond it were/are completely isolated from the rest of the world.

The anticipated mission was to support VHF/UHF simplex and repeater operations in a limited capacity, with only one repeater adequately covering the AO (according to pre-mission planning and research, and an area signals study assessment). The anticipated primary mission needs were expected to consist of HF Digital mode operations deep in isolated, mountainous terrain with no other communications available. Additionally, the anticipated immediate needs would be to insert RTOs (Radio Telephone Operators) into remote communities as a lifeline to the outside world.   The RTO would provide news and information into, and out of, the location, provide SITREPs, call for MEDEVAC, and otherwise coordinate supply and relief efforts.  These “sustainment ops” would consist of an operator, or team of operators, as attachments to remain on site at assigned locations, remotely, for days at a time, with resupply every couple of days.

We put the word out, “radio operators needed” and several AmRRON Corps operators immediately responded and prepared to deploy.

One AmRRON Corps member was part of a Tennessee ministry team delivering supplies in the very first couple of days, and when he mentioned he was a radio operator (and AmRRON Corps), the Grindstone team was excited. He helped set up their 2m radio at what would become the S6 (Comms Section) in the TOC (Tactical Operations Center) at the FOB.

The first wave deployment:

The first team of four AmRRON Corps operators arrived on Saturday.  ID10-T (former Marine comms/intel guy – is there such a thing as a “former” Marine?) from Alabama, followed by Foxtrot Quebec-01 (accompanied by Whiskey Zulu-22) from South Carolina, and finally, Bravo Foxtrot-29 from Tennessee. Tango Delta-12 (MO) and Bravo Tango-20 (TX) arrived at the FOB on Monday, Oct 7th.

FQ-01 is the Eastern SIGCEN Director, with years-long experience running SIGCEN ops and organizing comms support operations in multiple real-world disasters and simulated emergency exercises. BF-29 is a radio communications specialist by trade, a longtime AmRRON Corps member, and the liaison and Comms Director for our partner, PrepperNet.  We couldn’t have started the deployment off with a more competent and capable team of operators.  Competent quiet professionals.

Immediately they began assessing the situation on the ground and matching the anticipated mission with the actual mission requirements, making recommendations and adjustments for AmRRON to best support the Grindstone deployment.

The team went right to work because disaster relief operations were underway.  No time was wasted.

The Missions (actual):

The first action items by the team were to program all the radios for the saw teams and work crews heading out. They needed non ham radio frequencies standardized and programmed, as well as local repeater frequencies (for monitoring), as well as the area GMRS repeaters.

There was one repeater carrying the load of all the 2m area ham communications, and it became a primary method of linking work crews with the FOB. AmRRON operators were assigned to work teams, which were all within simplex or repeater reach of the FOB.

The Grindstone team on the ground have been absolutely superb to work with. If the radio operators needed anything, the item shows up in minutes.  Soon the tables, white boards, maps, dry erase markers, power cables, everything, arrived. The comms section was quickly assembled and work crews were headed out with radios programmed and they could communicate with each other.

The radios varied widely by brand, make, and model, which means so did the programming cables, which were not present in many cases.

Although a CHIRP file was created containing all of the area communications, ID10-T did the heavy lifting by manually programming most of the radios from the keypad.

BF-29 and FQ-01 worked closely with the FOB staff to forge a great working relationship and more clearly identified comms support goals.

This aided in updating the OPORDER (Operations Order) issued to the D-DET operators upon deployment.  We quickly identified four levels of operators needed to support the various needs.  JJS and FQ-01 began coordinating to develop a TO&E (Table of Organization and Equipment) for the mission.

An extract from the OPORDER V3.0 outlines some of these roles, duties, and assignments:


COMMAND AND SIGNAL

D-DET (Deployment Detachment) Operators will fall into one of four categories:

Level 1 – UHF/VHF – Fixed site. Operators who are not equipped or physically able to go into the field as an RTO.

Level 2 – UHF/VHF – RTO. Operator who is equipped to adequately provide VHF/UHF communications to support a field working team, within line-of-sight simplex or with the use of a repeater, to reach the FOB or relay.

Level 3 – (AmRRON) U/V/HF Digital mode capable (JS8Call, FLDIGI/FLMSG/FLAMP, Winlink/Pat or vARIM) who is also 80m NVIS capable, and off-grid capable.

Level 4 – Sustained Operations (AmRRON) U/V/HF Digital mode capable. Same description as Level 3 but completely self-reliant field ops capable, who can remain onsite in remote locations in austere conditions for days at a time without resupply. Must be accompanied by another person which may include Level 1, or Level 2 radio operators, security personnel, or work crew member(s).

Duties, Responsibilities, and Roles:

  • Establish and maintain contact with FOB personnel and Bravo Foxtrot-29 upon deploying, through the deployment, and until demobilization, who will notify the S6 (Comms) Section lead at the FOB.

  • Preprogram VHF/UHF radios prior to deploying, if practical, or within the hour after arriving at the FOB.

  • Have all equipment, software, antennas, off-grid power, connectors, and related equipment to provide communications support operations upon arrival.

  • Report to the S6 (Comms) Section lead upon arrival where you will be briefed on facility operations, and communications missions (if known).

  • Operations:

    • VHF/UHF-only operators may be assigned comms support roles which require only VHF or UHF communications, which may require simplex as well as repeater operations.

    • Any operator may be assigned to support local entities. Have printed ICS-213 forms on hand.

    • RTO OPERATIONS:

      • RTOs assigned to work crews, and who only possess VHF/UHF capabilities, may only be assigned to work/relief crews who are working in areas accessible to repeaters, or relays, or by simplex methods.

      • RTO’s assigned to work/relief crews which are operating in remote, mountainous terrain where there is the possibility of not reaching a repeater, MUST have *HF digital mode capabilities up to, and including, the 80m HF band. Antenna system must be a horizontal wire (end-fed or dipole) for exploiting NVIS conditions. NVIS, especially on 80m night/40m day) will be critical for contacting regional stations from steep, mountainous, narrow operating topography.

      • RTO’s assigned to **‘Stay Behind Operations’ MUST meet the same requirements as above, but also off-grid portable power capabilities, including charging system (solar/fuel generator/etc). These power systems can be field portable, and not necessarily man portable.

    • HF Frequencies: AmRRON SOI frequencies, based on the Persistent Presence Net schedule, or as directed by chain of command.

This communications plan will be assessed and revised to best support the mission, based on performance assessments by the operators, S6 Director, and Regional Support Team Director.

*HF digital mode: DEMONSTRATED PROFICIENCY with minimum FLDIGI, FLMSG, FLAMP with AmRRON Custom Forms; Preferably also JS8Call and VARA mode operations (Winlink/PAT and/or vARIM).

**Stay Behind Operations: These missions require an RTO stay at a fixed location to provide communications from very remote sites, under the most austere conditions for multiple days at a time, without returning to the FOB at the end of each day. In these cases, the operator will be supported with sustenance (food, water, shelter) via resupply.


 

As the disaster relief deployment has unfolded, it became clear that 99% of the operations were adequately supported by VHF/UHF simplex and repeater communications. The AO turned out to be much more limited in size and scope than first anticipated. So Level 1 and Level 2 operator activities are by far the most needed.

Bravo Foxtrot-29 has placed the Regional Support Team (HF digital) on “stand by” mode until HF operations are activated in the AO. The FOB comms section however, is on HF following the Persistent Presence Net schedule, just in case the area goes grid down.

The small, isolated nearby community of Little Germany had been completely cut off from the outside world. Completely grid down in all respects, and the road and bridges to access it were catastrophically destroyed by the storm.

As it turns out, there was one lone ham radio operator in Little Germany. A Grindstone team packed in a generator and other supplies, and has since been packing 10 gallons of fuel and other supplies into Little Germany since the beginning. This is what allowed the ham operator to connect to the rest of the community. However, there were several issues with his station related to power supply, antenna, etc., which were creating great challenges, in addition to the fatigue that was besetting him.

The Comms Section at the FOB assigned ID10-T, as a Level 4 operator, to Sustainment Ops to be inserted into Little Germany in an ‘Advisor’ and Comms Support capacity. This was accomplished via a mountainside goat trail (aka. the Ho Chi Musk Trail) that crews created to insert and resupply on foot. ID10-T linked up with the lone ham in Little Germany, much to the relief of the ham operator and others in the community. ID10-T conducted sustainment (Stay Behind) ops for at least three days, and is scheduled to be replaced by Level 4 AmRRON Corps operator, Tango Delta-12.

During ID10-T’s mission, he was able to assess and recommend improvements to the Little Germany ham’s station, and even had a Chameleon HF antenna brought in the following day by a Grindstone resupply mission. With many improvements made, the ham operator’s spirits were significantly raised, and was able to get HF radio communications established, and improvements made in the 2m communications. The Stay Behind operation also gave relief to the ham operator by being able to take a much needed break. More to follow after we receive ID10-T’s After Action Report.

Commercial power has since been restored to Little Germany (just in the last 24 hours), but they still have no supply route in or out. Grindstone is rumored to be making plans to rebuild a road with heavy equipment so that Little Germany can once again be reunited with the rest of the county’s population. Still, there are many more challenges ahead. Bridges! Why the National Guard and Army Reserve Combat Engineer units don’t have convoys of bridges on their way into the AO is beyond me. They have THOUSANDS of bridges sitting all across the country. What a perfect temporary solution which is already paid for to start reaching and connecting these hardest hit communities. (end rant… or else I won’t stop).

Future AmRRON D-DET Ops

While the overwhelming need at this very moment is for VHF/UHF radio operator support, there are reportedly “hundreds” of communities just like Little Germany which have not even been contacted or reached yet. This is steep, rugged, remote mountainous terrain with many roads and bridges destroyed, many miles in, and with little to no access other than by foot or air. Grindstone is working with air assets to insert emergency relief crews who will be required to have Level 3 and Level 4 operators attached to them.

The situation on the ground changes daily, and sometimes multiple times per day. This means that mission requirements change. Grindstone is really excited to be working with some of the most awesome, experienced, capable, and professional patriot radio operators anyone could hope for. We certain don’t want to let them down. There is a real world mission where lives are being saved. Sadly, two members of the community of Little Germany reportedly have passed away in the recent days because (as it was explained) they simply “lost their will to live.” So there is real hurt and suffering and despair out there. Knowing that people care enough, and are ON THE WAY adds tremendous hope to people who have been devastated and now feel forgotten and abandoned.

Operations are expected to reach deeper into the Appalachians, and with that, more skilled, experienced, and capable radio operators will be necessary for providing a lifeline outside the impact zones. This will be necessary for coordinating aid and relief for the victims, as well as a way to call for help for the disaster relief and work crews should they become injured. The work crews are doing highly dangerous work. They are professional heavy equipment operators, loggers, tree fallers, tree climbers, etc., working in washed out areas entangled with massive downed trees, along loose and unstable hillsides ripe for sudden mudslides and collapses. They have to have emergency comms that FRS, and sometimes simple VHF repeaters just won’t do it.

Stay tuned for more! But be patient. We’re up to our eyeballs in ops coordination and planning, and support for the D-DET. Just because it seems like there’s nothing going on, there is a TON going on behind the scenes, continually.

If you want to deploy, we need you! Go to https://amrron.com/2024/10/05/amrron-supporting-grindstone-ministries-hurricane-helene/ to learn more and find out how.

If you have a heart to serve, and want to contribute, and you’re a team player who can follow military-style (not abusive, just laser focused, no-nonsense mission-driven), there is a place for you.

Grindstone Ministries personnel are awesome and are getting things done!