History of Sachse RACES/ARES

The Sachse Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service, RACES, and Sachse Amateur Radio Emergency Service, ARES, were formed in the early spring of 2002.  The Emergency Operations Center, EOC, was established in the spring of 1995 almost two years after the Mother’s Day tornado on May 9, 1993, caused extensive property damage to the communities of Sachse and Wylie.  One person lost his life in this tornado when a neighboring trailer home was dropped on top of his by the tornado and he was trapped beneath the wreckage.  The tornado approached without warning and because the city had no warning system in place, there was no time to provide adequate warning to the community.

Shortly after the Mother’s Day tornado of 1993, Sachse city officials began an active campaign to be prepared should such a disaster strike again.  Emergency warning systems were installed.  The city recruited the assistance of the Garland Amateur Radio Civil Emergency Service to provide specially trained amateurs to operate the EOC during severe weather, chemical spills, and other emergency situations.