According to American Radio Relay League (ARRL), every year since 1933, more than 31,000 amateur radio operators throughout North America set up temporary transmitting stations in public places to demonstrate ham radio’s science, skill and service to their communities and the nation by combining public service, emergency preparedness, community outreach, and technical skills all in a single event — the annual Field Day.

Columbiana County, which has over 400 FCC-licensed Ham operators, will be well represented at the 24-hour event that starts today at 2 p.m. and ends Sunday at 2 p.m.

“There are about 750,000 hams in the USA, with a population of 340 million the percentage of hams is 0.22%,” Don Kemp of the Lisbon Area Amateur Radio Association (LAARA) shared. “Columbiana County has 474 licenses with a population of 100,000 making the percentage of hams 0.474%.That’s much higher than the national average.”

Members of LAARA, the East Palestine Amateur Radio Club, the Triangle Amateur Radio Club in East Liverpool and Salem Area Amateur Radio Association as well as the Columbiana High School’s Columbiana Clippers Amateur Radio Club (with the call sign K8LPS) are all participating in Field Day which Field Day include making contacts with other amateur radio stations -across North America and possibly across the world on various bands and modes, testing emergency preparedness capabilities, such as operating without commercial power, and engaging with the public and showcasing the benefits of amateur radio.

“Field Day is an annual amateur radio contest, widely sponsored by IARU regions member organizations, encouraging emergency communications preparedness among amateur radio operators, ” said David Butler, president of the East Palestine Amateur Radio Club.

This year, Butler’s club will be christening its newly-built Emergency Response Trailer.

“We received the bare trailer as a donation from Norfolk Southern Railroad in response to the derailment they had in East Palestine in 2023,” he said. “We’ve been working to outfit it with the equipment and redoing the interior since we received it last year.”

Butler welcomes anyone to the East Palestine City Park to check out the ECOMM trailer which will be set up by the row of shelter houses at the park.

Other county operators will be set up at Beaver Creek State Park — another event site in the county that the public is usually welcome to attend and learn more about amateur radio.

“Everyone is encouraged to come out to one of the locations and learn about amateur radio and experience it,” Kemp added. “Field Day is a great opportunity to learn about amateur radio hands on.”