I have recently become more aware of and generally interested in electronics and amateur radio, and it got me thinking. What advantage, if any, would there be to having amateur radio experience, over a simple disaster crank radio/flashlight, in the event of a major natural disaster or some other emergency that leads to a longer delay in power being restored? For the sake of argument, let’s assume you have a generator or battery bank to supply your own electricity.
I’m GMRS licensed, it’s like FRS (WalMart radios) with more power and additional channels. I don’t have my tech ham license but will probably get it. I want a GMRS repeater, there are cheap ones out of China that are within reach.
GMRS is good for local communication with your group, and if anyone is around they will certainly be monitoring those frequencies.