GMRS and Amateur Radio for emergencies... Have you done it?

[WRTC928]

On 10/16/2025 at 7:59 AM, WRUE951 said:

Yup, it happens,  i was in Ridgecrest when the Big earth quakes struck..  First big one took out cell service and city wide power  for several hours, next big one the following day did the same.  We used handhelds and worked off local repeaters which were backed up with stand-bye power.  Although the cell service was restored pretty quick, having the HT's for some communication has handy  

And I'm sure you felt a lot better knowing that you have a way to communicate if you have a serious emergency (beyond the obvious). I can happily go for days without communicating with anyone else when I'm in the mood and it's my choice, but when there's no way to talk to the outside world in the event of an emergency, it starts to feel pretty lonely. I suspect a lot of other people are the same. Thankfully, modern technology gives us a lot of options. I have one of those little Garmin devices with which I can send text messages from almost anywhere in the world. It costs ~$15/month and I'd happily pay twice that. I haven't used it except a few times just to confirm it still works, but it provides a lot of peace of mind. Cell phone, internet, amateur radio, GMRS, satellite text device...kind of the "belt and suspenders" concept but squared. And I'm perfectly capable of ignoring all of them when I want to be left alone.

[nokones]

A couple of years ago, I came across a head on collision on a mountain road near Palm Springs and out of range of cellular coverage. Every person on scene was holding up their cell phone trying to get a signal. 

I called out in the blind on a GMRS repeater channel used in that area and I made contact with a station near the Salton Sea and he relayed the emergency to the CHP.

[Over2U]

Several years ago, near Indio, CA, I replied to a distress call heard on one of the GMRS Channels. The youngish sounding man who replied reported that he had been in a Jeep accident up in the mountains, but had a suspiciously strong signal from a presumably hand held radio. He could not provide ANY useful details, not even his name. Nevertheless I reported the call, and what little information I had, to the local 9-1-1 Telephone Operator.

[WRUE951]

about two years ago at a campground East of Lake Crawley one of my buddies headed into a nearby town (Mammoth Lakes) to get supplies.  After he left I went to the ice chest to grab a beer and relax..  Holy Cow, I just discovered we were almost out of beer.  I tried reaching him on the cell, 'No Service'.  I got on the radio, Bingo, got him, loud and clear. 'Pick tip some more Beer, we are almost out'..   That damn radio saved out day..   

[WRUU653]

1 hour ago, WRUE951 said:

about two years ago at a campground East of Lake Crawley one of my buddies headed into a nearby town (Mammoth Lakes) to get supplies.  After he left I went to the ice chest to grab a beer and relax..  Holy Cow, I just discovered we were almost out of beer.  I tried reaching him on the cell, 'No Service'.  I got on the radio, Bingo, got him, loud and clear. 'Pick tip some more Beer, we are almost out'..   That damn radio saved out day..   

I heard tales of campers that almost ran out of beer but I always thought it was just scary folklore stories people tell around the fire. 

[SteveShannon]

3 minutes ago, WRUU653 said:

I heard tales of campers that almost ran out of beer but I always thought it was just scary folklore stories people tell around the fire. 

My dad and his friend Herman went fishing in North Dakota.  In the late afternoon my dad decided to take the boat out on the lake. Herman chose to stay at the trailer and fish from the shore.  
After dad got out on the lake his boat motor quit.  He ended up in the boat, overnight, dressed only for a warm afternoon, not a cool evening.  The only thing he had to drink was ice cold beer. Herman was in the hot trailer and all he had to drink was coffee.  Both were miserable and neither man got any sleep.   
Radios would have been nice!

[WRTC928]

12 hours ago, Over2U said:

Several years ago, near Indio, CA, I replied to a distress call heard on one of the GMRS Channels. The youngish sounding man who replied reported that he had been in a Jeep accident up in the mountains, but had a suspiciously strong signal from a presumably hand held radio. He could not provide ANY useful details, not even his name. Nevertheless I reported the call, and what little information I had, to the local 9-1-1 Telephone Operator.

Like you, I would have reported it, but like you, I would have thought it was pretty suspicious. Kinda makes me wonder what would make someone want to do a hoax like that, though. People are weird. 

[WRUE951]

12 hours ago, WRUU653 said:

I heard tales of campers that almost ran out of beer but I always thought it was just scary folklore stories people tell around the fire. 

you can't sit around the fire without a beer..   cmnon 

[NCJeb]

10 hours ago, WRUE951 said:

you can't sit around the fire without a beer..   cmnon 

Or at least sasparilla (don’t knock it til you’ve tried it)

[WRUE951]

23 minutes ago, NCJeb said:

Or at least sasparilla (don’t knock it til you’ve tried it)

i’ve tried it,, didn’t like it..  I’ll stick with a Grupo Modelo 

[SteveShannon]

58 minutes ago, NCJeb said:

Or at least sasparilla (don’t knock it til you’ve tried it)

I’ve had it. I thought it was okay.  It’s a lot like root beer, since it’s derived from the root of a sarsaparilla plant.  My dad’s store used to sell it in cans.