Sri Lanka’s amateur radio operators are offering their services to any area that needs communications services. Sri Lanka’s amateur radio operators are offering their services to any area that needs communications services.
Until yesterday The Radio Society of Sri Lanka operated a short wave radio link between Hambantota and the Prime Minister’s disaster management office at Temple trees, and government offices in the stricken area.
“We closed the link after the police got a communications link up in Hambantota,” Victor Goonetilleke, President of the Radio Society of Sri Lanka said.
“We went in because the District Secretaries office only had a satellite phone and communications was difficult.”
Amateur radio operators, popularly known as ‘Ham’ operators are hobbyists who are licensed to operate two-way communications equipment.
The Hambantota station was operated by Asantha Illesinghe (4S7AK), Dimuthu Wickremesinghe (4S7DZ), Kusal Epa (4S7KE).
Mobile signals also began to come up later. As landlines went down, Sri Lanka’s mobile networks provided vital links to many tsunami-hit areas.