(WSIL) -- It's during times of crisis when we realize the importance of communication.
The bombing that shook Nashville on Christmas Day, damaged a key AT&T communication hub, knocking out internet and phone services across their region.
That's just one instance when phone and internet services failed in an emergency. It's for that reason, Massac County Amateur Radio Club President, Ruben Fuente, has added an extra means of communication to his emergency plan.
"It can be a hobby for a lot of people, or it can be a service that people are wanting to contribute towards."
We all have our routine ways of receiving emergency alerts, whether it be via your cell phone, cable box, the internet, or a NOAA weather radio, but in the event of a catastrophe where none of those are options, do you have a way to receive and broadcast communications? If your answer's no, you may want to do what this couple did, and get a ham radio.
"It could be something as simple as the power's out, the internet's out, which means that the phones are out, whether it's a cellphone or a landline. You pick it up and you communicate with another ham radio operator, whether it's a family member or not, to let them know that you're okay, and where you are, and that you're on your way home or whatever."
Ham radio is short for amateur radio, and refers to the type of bands that are available for enthusiasts to communicate on. You have to be licensed to communicate, but anyone can listen, you just have to know how.
"Even if you're not going to be able to communicate, just to be able to listen, and know how to listen, how to tune into the various frequencies where you can find information about what's going on."
"My father was a ham, but he never got a license, so we would only listen."
Aimee Mitchell, and her husband Ross, live in Paducah, and recently joined the Massac County Amateur Radio club.
"They had nets, and they formed, almost basically like what we know today as a chatroom," says Aimee.
You can think of it as the original virtual social network� but over the waves.
"Everything from their family to their weather, to their local neighborhoods."
Of course, it can also be a critical means of communication during emergencies.
"I decided, we needed a way to communicate when the infrastructure went down," says Aimee's husband Ross.
"We came from Hurricane Katrina in 2005, we also, five years later, suffered the Nashville Flood, and almost passed away in that flood."
From experience, the Mitchells knew the advantage of having alternative methods of communication.
"When my wife and children left two days before the storm, I lost all communications with her. The cellphones went down, there was no way to talk to her, so of course for me, I just had to put my trust in a higher power, and hope for the best."
"We thought, how valuable ham radio really could have been. In the Nashville Flood, when we almost passed away in the flood, we thought if we had had a ham radio, we would've been able to call for help," says Aimee.
"I had my children, I had my animals, and I had her, so I had to ferry across this wide expanse of a rising river, a couple of times to get us out of there. Then once we got on the other side to safety, we just sat there. There was nobody there, nobody around, and we were stuck," says Ross.
In preparation for the next 'once in a lifetime catastrophe', the Mitchells studied for, and attained their licenses.
"My wife and I have always been a team so to speak, and I said, well let's try to get our ham radio license, and we pursued it, and I'm certainly glad we did, it's been a marvelous experience,"
"There are times where emergencies do happen, I mean bad things do happen nowadays, but you definitely need communication," says Aimee.
"This is fun in a way, besides being able to talk to people all over the world, I'm able to save my family, and other families. To me that gives me a sense of gratification," says Ross.
The Mitchells say the test requires SOME study time -- they say it's not difficult. If you're interested in wielding your own ham radio, they suggest contacting your local ham radio club to get started.
