EMC149  4 C's of Communications 
To:   Emergency Communications Units - Information Bulletin
To:   Emergency Management Agencies via Internet and Radio
By:   Auxiliary Communications Service (ACS) of the
        California Governor's Office of Emergency Services  

EMC149  4 C's of Communications    9/14/98

The Four C's of Emergency Communications

Tom Currie, N4AOF, recently suggested a few simple ways to 
improve your overall emergency communications capability.  
Although Tom has a background with Kentucky REACT, his advice 
can apply to any organization utilizing emergency communications, 
either paid or volunteer:

"The best advice for anyone performing emergency communications 
can be summarized by the four C's:  Calm, Courteous, Correct, and 
Concise.

"CALM.  Try to keep emotion out of your voice.  No matter what the 
emergency, a calm, professional attitude will help keep things cool 
and get the message through more quickly and accurately.  Losing 
your cool, calm attitude may cost an important message.  The more 
reason you have for getting excited, the more important it is for you to 
remain calm.  As an emergency communications volunteer you should 
set a good, calm example for the other people to follow.

"COURTEOUS.  You must think of yourself as a public servant.  
Regardless of provocation, remain courteous at all times.  Never display 
temper on the air.  Remember the "Golden Rule" at all times and 
practice it.  Never fight with other operators over calls or reports.  
Always follow the instructions of the Net Control Station - whether you 
agree with those instructions or not.  Most problems can wait until 
after the emergency situation is over. If some problem absolutely 
must be ironed out, do it by telephone or on another frequency
- not on the net.

"CORRECT.  Work to keep errors out of your communications.  Use 
the phonetic alphabet and repeat the message where appropriate 
to get names, locations, and other information accurately.  Write 
everything down for reference.  Remember, your role is 
communications - you are not in charge of anything - most 
communications will be between the people who are in charge
 - when the Emergency Operations Center or Net Control Station  
asks a question, go get the answer from the person responsible, 
don't just give your best guess. It is always better to admit you don't 
know rather than give out information that is wrong.  Always use 
plain language -- Don't use jargon, Q-signals, 10-codes, etc., which 
may not be understood by everyone.  Avoid using specialized words
and codes, even those of the agency you are supporting unless 
the message is going specifically to the same agency.

"CONCISE.  Your job as a emergency communications volunteer is 
to get the message transferred while also allowing time for the other 
operators to get their messages transferred.  Avoid tying up the net 
by keeping your transmissions as brief as possible. Always leave 
a few seconds between transmissions in case someone needs 
to break in with an emergency call.  A strictly business attitude is 
your best technique for assuring time saving communications.  
You must consider the conditions - if everyone is full-quieting, 
there is little need to spell words, but if conditions aren't good or the 
word is particularly difficult, then it makes sense to spell it.
Don't rush - speaking a little bit slower often gets the message 
through faster because the other operator doesn't have to ask for 
repeats.  Don't assume everyone has a pad and pencil instantly 
ready when you need to send them a long or complex message
- ask first, it saves time in the long run."
                               ---
ACS Web page: http://acs.oes.ca.gov       FTP archive:
ftp.ucsd.edu/hamradio/packet/tcpip/incoming for new
bulletins and ftp.ucsd.edu/hamradio/races for earlier ones.
Landline BBS: 916-262-0856 (graphical & standard interface).
Dave Larton, ACS Training Officer: email: Dave_Larton@oes.ca.gov
EOM EMC149