Each Functional Exercise will be used to evaluate equipment capabilities and Pinellas ACS readiness to respond to an activation event. Each exercise will require participants to perform a variety of skills that are associated with VHF/UHF and HF deployments. Each Functional Exercise will incorporate a subset of the skills identified in the following documents.
- The Florida ARRL® Tri-Section ARES® Standardized Training Plan Position Task Book (PTB)
- The PTB for the Position of Auxiliary Communicator (AUXC)
- The Pinellas County ACS/ARES® Winlink Training Plan.
Each Functional Exercise will be designed to require no more than 8 hours to complete.
Exercise Activity
October 1st, 2022 – Service Denied Exercise
Scope
The 2022 Service Denied exercise is designed to evaluate the performance of Florida amateur and SHARES radio networks during a simulated communications emergency. It is a multi-county exercise with a total of thirty-four Florida county Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES®) / Auxiliary Communications Service (ACS) teams participating. The exercise is designed and administered by the North Florida Section of the American Radio Relay League (ARRL®). Pinellas County ACS is a participant in this exercise. The overarching 2022 Service Denied exercise plan (ExPlan) is located on the Website for the North Florida Section.
Objective
The primary objective of this exercise for Pinellas ACS is to evaluate the performance of Pinellas ACS during a simulated emergency that requires the Pinellas County EOC to be activated, emergency evacuation shelters to be opened, and one or more ICCs to be deployed. ACS participants will be required to emplace, configure, operate, and maintain CommandRunner™ CRDs™ at simulated ICCs; and exchange tactical / formal analog voice and digital message traffic with deployed ACS Resources, partner agencies, the Pinellas County EOC, and the state of Florida EOC.
Documentation – Draft
Exercise Plan
This Pinellas County segment of the exercise Plan contains the information needed by the Pinellas County ACS to plan, control, evaluate, and participate in the 2022 Service Denied Exercise. This plan is a component of the overarching 2022 Service Denied Exercise Plan. Its scope is limited to the evaluation of the communications objectives and critical tasks performed by Pinellas ACS during a communications and power system emergency.
Incident Action Plan (IAP)
The incident action plan for the Pinellas ACS segment of the 2022 Service Denied exercise.
Exercise Evaluation Guides (EEGs)
These documents are used by exercise evaluators to document and score the performance of ACS Radio Operators (RADOs) during a simulated deployment to Pinellas County emergency evacuation shelters, the EOC radio room, and Incident Communications Centers (ICCs).
After-Action Report and Improvement Plan
The After-Action Report and Improvement Plan (AAR/IP) documents the outcomes and recommended corrective actions resulting from the Pinellas ACS segment of the 2022 Service Denied Exercise. Appendix A contains the artifacts produced by each ACS communication teams during the exercise.
TBD
May 2022 – Hurricane Amaranth Exercise
Scope
This functional exercise will evaluate the multi-agency and multi-jurisdictional communications objectives and critical tasks performed by Pinellas ACS during the activation of the Pinellas County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) during the approach, landfall, and aftermath of a tropical cyclone. The exercise was divided into three operational periods.
Objective
The primary objective of this exercise is to evaluate the performance of ACS during a simulated hurricane emergency that requires the Pinellas County EOC to be activated, emergency evacuation shelters to be opened, and one or more Incident Communications Centers (ICCs) to be deployed. ACS participants will be required to obtain communications equipment from the EOC; install, configure, and operate communications equipment at simulated emergency evacuation shelters; and emplace, configure, operate, and maintain SatRunner™ CRDs™ and CommandRunner™ CRDs™ at simulated ICCs.
Documentation
Exercise Plan
The Exercise Plan contains the information needed by the Pinellas ACS to plan, control, evaluate, and participate in the Pinellas County Hurricane Amaranth Exercise. This plan is a component of the overarching Pinellas County Hurricane Amaranth Exercise Plan. Its scope is limited to the evaluation of multi-agency and multi-jurisdictional communications objectives and critical tasks.
Exercise Evaluation Guides (EEGs)
These documents are used by exercise evaluators to document and score the performance of ACS Radio Operators (RADOs) during a simulated deployment to Pinellas County emergency evacuation shelters, the EOC radio room, and Incident Communications Centers (ICCs).
After-Action Report and Improvement Plan
The After-Action Report and Improvement Plan (AAR/IP) documents the outcomes and recommended corrective actions resulting from the ACS component of the Pinellas County Hurricane Amaranth Exercise. Appendix A contains the artifacts produced by Pinellas County and each ACS communication teams during the exercise.
Presentations
April 24th, 2022 – Initial presentation to Pinellas ACS membership.
April 28th, 2022 – Presentation to Pinellas County Department of Emergency Management.
May 3rd, 2022 – Operational Period 2 Briefing.
May 19th, 2022 – Draft After-Action Report and Improvement plan briefing to Pinellas ACS membership.
Exercise Photos
