How to use the COMMUNICATION NETS board in WebEOC • From the Login page, a screen similar to the one below should appear. Different login positions will have different options. • Double clicking the COMMUNICATION NETS menu listing will bring up the page below. • About the COMMUNICATION NETS board o The COMMUNICATION NETS board is intended to provide WebEOC users with a listing of all ongoing communications nets during a disruption of primary means of communication. The National Incident Management System (NIMS) calls for the use of an ICS-205 form to list channels and frequencies to be used during an incident, but distribution of a paper form is not practical during a regional or statewide incident. The COMMUNICATION NETS board serves as an electronic and dynamic ICS-205 form. o NEW NETWORK button – Used to add a new net. o SHOW REMOVED button – Once a Net is closed, its “Visibility” can be unposted (or removed), which effectively hides the net for most purposes. If it is necessary to see a removed net, clicking the SHOW REMOVED button will display those nets for a few days. Each month the history is archived and no longer visible on WebEOC. o Column Headings – in addition to giving title to the columns, clicking on them will sort the nets by the information in each column. Network Type – Network (or Nets as they are known in the Amateur Radio community) may be: Amateur, Satellite, 800 MHz Trunking or VHF. (Additional types maybe added later.) Network Name – The network name is assigned by the creator and should reflect the intended purpose for the net. For example, in this drill, the name of a net established to provide a communications link to a given county EMA/EOC should be the name of the county plus EMA or EOC. For example, if Clinton • • County needs communication support, the name should be “Clinton Co. EOC”. Or if the Red Cross is attempting to gather health and welfare information from their shelters on 3.918 MHz statewide, then “Red Cross – Health & Welfare” would be a good name for this net. Frequency Column and Mode Column – These columns display the frequency in MHz and Mode (AM, FM, LSB, USB & Digital) respectively. Operators Column – Should display the number of operators checked into the net. o DETAILS button – Displays information about the operators checked into the net. o EDIT button – Allows the main information about the net to be edited. o LOG button – Not functional at this time. (It is intended to facilitate the use of “tactical call signs” by providing a log of actual call signs of operators.) Clicking on the NEW NETWORK button will bring open a NEW RECORD board which looks like the one below. About the NEW RECORD board o POSTED BY field – This field will be prefilled with the Logon ID and Logon Position of the user who created the entry. o POSTED ON field – The date and time will be prefilled in this field. o AUDIENCE – These radio buttons are used to select who will see this information. For Amateur Nets, always select “All Users”. VISIBILITY check box – If checked, the net information will be available to everyone checked in the AUDIENCE radio button. If un-checked, it will not be visible to anyone, unless the SHOW REMOVED button has been pressed on the previous board. o NETWORK TYPE – Select the appropriate type of net from the drop-down arrow. o NETWORK NAME – As mentioned previously, the network name is assigned by the creator and should reflect the intended purpose for the net. For example, in this drill, the name of a net established to provide a communications link to a given county EMA/EOC should be the name of the county plus EMA or EOC. For example, if Clinton County needs communication support, the name should be “Clinton Co. EOC”. Or if the Red Cross is attempting to gather health and welfare information from their shelters on 3.918 MHz statewide, then “Red Cross – Health & Welfare” would be a good name for this net. NOTE: If a digital net is created; specific details of the digital format should be included in the name as well. For example: Packet, CW, Winmor, PSK-31, RTTY, etc. o FREQUENCY / TALK GROUP - Frequencies should be in MHz. Talk Groups must use the official name assigned by Project Hoosier SAFE-T. o MODE – Select the appropriate mode from the drop-down arrow. To create a net: o Complete the information on the NEW RECORD board. o Check spelling by use of the SPELL CHECK button. o Save the net by clicking the SAVE button. Adding operators to a net o Once the net has been created, at least a net control operator must be added to the the net. o From the COMMUNICATION NETS board, click on the DETAILS button. The ADD OPERATOR board should display. o • • o To add and an operator, click the ADD OPERATOR button. The NEW OPERATOR RECORD board should open, as shown below. o o OPERATOR NAME field – Enter the operator’s first and last name. OPERATOR FUNCTION – There are four functions available; Net Control Station, WebEOC Liaison, Net Liaison, & Operator. Net Control Station – This is the operator in charge of running the net. Nets should be run as directed nets. WebEOC Liaison – This operator is responsible to monitor the net and at the direction of the Net Control Operator, enter or retrieve information from WebEOC. Depending on the needs of the Net Control Operator there may be none, one or multiple WebEOC Liaisons. Net Liaison – This operator is responsible to monitor the net and at the direction of the Net Control Operator, transfer information to or from other ongoing nets. Again the number of Net Liaisons is at the discretion of the Net Control Operator. Operator – These are other operators checked into the net. Depending on the type of net, they may be representing a county EOC, hospital, shelter, sheriff’s department, fire department, or any Public Safety agency. OPERATOR CALL SIGN – Enter the FCC call sign of the operator and if tactical call signs are being used, the tactical call sign being used. Tactical call signs should be something easy for all operators to remember and represent the function the operator is serving. For example, a hospital, Mercy Hospital, has to be evacuated. It is going to take 36 hours to move all the patients to another facility. It will be much easier to remember “Mercy Hospital” than the call of the operator. There may be several different operators over the course of 36 hours who fill this function. If all operators record their tactical call with their FCC call in WebEOC, the FCC requirements for identification are met. WEBEOC AVAILABLE – Yes or no. COUNTY, ADDRESS, CITY, STATE – This information should reference where the operator is located, not their home address. PHONE – If a working phone is available, enter area code and number. Click on the SPELL CHECK button to check spelling. Click on Save to Save. RETRIEVE RECORD – This button is not functional at this time. Notes: • Status of an operator can be edited by selecting the DETAILS of the net and then the EDIT button on the operator’s line. • Operators without access to WebEOC can be entered by any operator with access to WebEOC. • To check out of a net: o Let the Net Control Operator know you are checking out and any other pertinent information. o Click on the EDIT button on listing the name of the operator and un-check the VISIBILITY check box.