AREC - Amateur Radio Emergency Communications

AREC - Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Radio Communications support for Search & Rescue, Civil Defence and Community Events.
-Connecting You in Crisis, Supporting You in Safety-

Is that a ghost? Is that car undergoing some kind of surgery? Is that..a packet of toffee pops?! 🍪No...(well, yes to the...
10/09/2026

Is that a ghost?
Is that car undergoing some kind of surgery?
Is that..a packet of toffee pops?! 🍪

No...(well, yes to the bikkies).. it's actually our volunteers in the middle of a communications activity in the pouring rain.

Some of our Auckland vollies set up a Civil Defence-themed activity where teams had the task of connecting an isolated community to the radio base.

The scenario required them to think through frequency options and what type of equipment to use, and just as they would in a real-life response - problem solving with the situation at hand.

Supporting communities that become isolated during events such as severe weather, is something we are doing more and more - so practice is essential.

If you have an interest in emergency communications and community resilience - we are always looking for volunteers - www.arec.nz/volunteer

And THIS is why our volunteers, and those we work alongside, keep showing up! 💛Incredible work by all of those involved ...
08/09/2026

And THIS is why our volunteers, and those we work alongside, keep showing up! 💛
Incredible work by all of those involved - so glad this family were able to get home safely 🏠

Our Hawkes Bay team are legends! 👏

📣We are hiring! 📣If you have experience in fundraising and want a job where you can make a real difference, take a look ...
07/09/2026

📣We are hiring! 📣
If you have experience in fundraising and want a job where you can make a real difference, take a look at our new National Fundraising Lead role.

We are a non-profit charitable organisation, and need someone to help us connect with the right people to secure grants and sponsorships that will enable us to keep supporting Kiwis in need.

The listing is live on Seek now! 👀
https://nz.seek.com/job/94376737?ref=cm-ui

We like to 'muck in' and apparently get 'stuck in'..quite literally! 👢🏁🏎Fun fact, AREC have a proud history of supportin...
04/09/2026

We like to 'muck in' and apparently get 'stuck in'..quite literally! 👢🏁🏎

Fun fact, AREC have a proud history of supporting with communications at car rallies!

Community events provide an opportunity for our volunteers to practice their skills with comms safety planning and radio operation, whilst having a good bit of fun helping out locally.

One of our long-term volunteers Rob headed out with our newer volunteer Pauline to support at the Rally Hawkes Bay event in August- it's great to see the transfer of knowledge between our people 💛

✋Keen to volunteer? Apply online today https://arec.nz/volunteer/
Bay

If you think AREC volunteers 'just play with radios' ...you couldn't be more wrong! 🙅It's our job to ensure that communi...
26/08/2026

If you think AREC volunteers 'just play with radios' ...you couldn't be more wrong! 🙅

It's our job to ensure that communications for Search and Rescue and Emergency Events are reliable, so we take time throughout the year to test equipment and fine-tune our processes.

It just so happens that the best places for testing are tucked away, and provide the best views 🌇

Here's some of our AREC volunteers in the wild:
📸1 - Darryl, Soren, Terry, Kieran and Murray in Whatipū scoping a repeater site for an exercise
📸2&3- Tai and Kieran deploying a repeater out at Huia in the Waitākere Ranges during a communications exercise

If you are interested in volunteering with us (and like sunsets)- apply now https://arec.nz/join-us/


📸supplied

Our volunteers support the community during an emergency event, but they also work behind the scenes getting things read...
19/08/2026

Our volunteers support the community during an emergency event, but they also work behind the scenes getting things ready before anything happens.

A few of our Gisborne and Ruatoria volunteers recently had a meeting with our friends over at Tairāwhiti Civil Defence, where they discussed the creation of a high-level Communications Plan for the area, which would be utilised when there is a major emergency 🚨

The plan would provide guidance from technical protocols through to best practice around information management.

All of this supports a robust coordinated response between the ECC (Emergency Coordination Centre) and EOCs (Emergency Operation Centres), field teams and partner agencies 🤝

We know something you don't know..👀what our volunteers have been doing behind the scenes lately! 💛Our Volunteers Lilian,...
08/07/2026

We know something you don't know..👀what our volunteers have been doing behind the scenes lately!

💛Our Volunteers Lilian, Veronika & Amber supported Gisborne SAR teams with comms, successfully locating a missing youth (look at the time on the clock!🕐)
💛Helen ran PRS radio procedures training for some of the Papakura Māori Wardens
💛Our Westland Group supported our SAR Partners at the Tasman District Police SAREX with radio communications
💛Volunteers from the Upper North got together for our Response Leader Course in Auckland
💛Our North Otago Group joined the Otago Regional CDEM exercise, providing radio demonstrations

If this kind of mahi sounds like something you want to be involved in - get in touch👉 https://arec.nz/volunteer/

AREC volunteers recently attended the annual Police SAR Qualifications course at Dip Flat, providing communications for ...
29/06/2026

AREC volunteers recently attended the annual Police SAR Qualifications course at Dip Flat, providing communications for the Search and Rescue exercise component 🔦

Dip Flat is a remote military camp operated by the Royal New Zealand Air Force, located in the Marlborough region. It has been utilised as a practical testing ground for new military recruits for over 60 years! 🗻

AREC have supported NZ Police with the SAR component of the exercise since 2017, undertaking activities including the setup of antenna systems for HF and VHF, creating the comms plan for where to deploy the portable VHF repeaters, operating the radios and logging messages in SARTrack.

Read more about the exercise > https://www.police.govt.nz/news/ten-one-magazine/getting-started-sar

A big congratulations to our wonderful volunteer Jim Nelson, who was presented with a Certificate of Achievement by The ...
24/06/2026

A big congratulations to our wonderful volunteer Jim Nelson, who was presented with a Certificate of Achievement by The Hon James Meager, Associate Minister of Transport, at the NZ Search and Rescue awards on Tuesday night.

Jim has been with us for 28 years, responding to call-outs, and going above and beyond to make sure the work gets done.

His mahi behind the scenes, maintaining equipment and supporting with training is greatly appreciated and we are proud to see him recognised for his volunteer work 💛

As 2026 marks the International Year of the Volunteer, we were pleased to have the opportunity to bring a number of volunteers along to the awards celebration aswell (L-R Paul Rennie, John Newson, Daniel Erickson, Soren Low, Joanne Watson - photographed with The Hon James Meager)

Photo credit: MARTY MELVILLE PHOTOGRAPHY 📸

Address

68 Ward Street
Upper Hutt
5018

Website

,

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when AREC - Amateur Radio Emergency Communications posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to AREC - Amateur Radio Emergency Communications:

Shortcuts

Share

Category