SCHEART repeaters will return to normal operation at 5:00 PM on Monday, January 26, 2026. Thanks to everyone who supported agencies during this event.
Update 1/23/2026: The SCHEART VHF/UHF repeater system will be linked to the main conference bridge today at 6:00 PM with the following exceptions: Conway UHF (equipment issue), Wallace UHF (Low Country Interconnect), and Union (off the air). On Saturday morning, the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) radio room will start operations and switch DMR system to emergency operations mode (disconnecting PRN talk group from North Carolina). The SEOC will continue operations until the storm clears. The SCHEART repeater system will be available for general use by licensed amateur radio operators except if a controlled net is in progress. Remember: 1) Key your mike and wait 2 seconds before you start talking to allow all repeaters to link, 2) leave breaks of 5 seconds between transmissions to allow urgent traffic access to the system, 3) Keep individual transmissions short (under a minute) to allow any urgent traffic to faster access to the system, and 4) always follow direction of the SEOC radio room net controller.
SCEMD informed SCHEART that the SEOC will be activated this weekend in response to forecast winter weather event. NWS is forecasting a rain/snow/sleet and freezing rain event. SCHEART volunteers and all amateur operators should plan to operate if widespread power outages occur. A freezing rain event will create hazardous travel conditions. The normal weekend SCHEART linking and repeater operation will be affected. Please follow directions of K4EMD on use of the system during this event.
