July 7, 2026
City Council
DATE: July 7, 2026
TO: Mayor Martinez and Members of the City Council
FROM:
Councilmember Soheila Bana
Subject:
Honoring the Richmond Emergency Communications
(EmComm¹) volunteers for their leadership and service,
celebrating the installation of the City Hall emergency antenna, and declaring April 30, 2026, as "Richmond
Emergency Communications Volunteer Day
FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no direct fiscal impact associated with the adoption of this proclamation.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL
ACTION:
None.
STATEMENT OF THE
ISSUE:
The City of Richmond is situated in a high-risk seismic area directly atop the Hayward Fault. In the event of a major earthquake or catastrophic wildfire, traditional
communication infrastructures—including cellular
networks, internet, and landline telephones—are
statistically likely to fail or become overwhelmed.
For over a decade, a dedicated group of resident
volunteers has worked to establish a "fail-safe"
communication network using amateur and auxiliary
radio. Led by David Swanson, this group recently
successfully advocated for the installation of a dedicated emergency antenna atop City Hall and a portable radio
station in the building’s basement. This infrastructure allows for direct, real-time communication between
Richmond’s disparate neighborhoods and the City’s
Emergency Operations Center.
AGENDA
REPORT
July 7, 2026
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
PROCLAMATION honoring the Richmond Emergency
Communications volunteers for their leadership and
service, celebrating the installation of the City Hall
emergency antenna, and declaring April 30, 2026, as
"Richmond Emergency Communications Volunteer Day" -
Councilmember Soheila Bana (510-672-3490).
DISCUSSION:
The City of Richmond sits atop the Hayward Fault and faces significant risk from a major earthquake, with potential for consequential damage, injury, and heightened wildfire threats.
The Office of Emergency Services (OES) recognizes that professional first responders will be overwhelmed in a large-scale disaster and requires trained volunteer resources to augment response and recovery; and, reliable, rapid communication is essential during and after a major disaster to report incidents, coordinate response, and protect lives and property.
A collective team of citizen radio operators, led by David Swanson, advocated for an antenna on City Hall to enable rapid emergency communication between Richmond neighborhoods and the Richmond Emergency Operations Center (EOC). The recent installation of the antenna atop City Hall and the placement of a portable radio station in the City Hall basement is the culmination of these sustained advocacy, training, and coordination efforts.
After a major earthquake the antenna and EOC radio station will enable rapid reporting of neighborhood emergencies such as fires, freeway and road blockages, downed buildings, life threatening injuries, and other incidents requiring first responder support.
For many years these citizen radio operators have built a network of organized auxiliary communicators, leading radio communication practice sessions, exercises, and drills in Richmond and with other jurisdictions in Contra Costa County as well as statewide to maintain readiness and interoperability.
These community leaders are active in clubs and organizations including the Contra Costa County Communications Club (4Cs), KARO ECHO (Kensington El Cerrito), the East Bay Amateur Radio Club (EBARC), and others, providing training, mentorship, and leadership to neighbors, CERT participants, and local jurisdictions.
This proclamation would formally recognize and commend the Richmond Emergency Communications volunteers for their leadership, skill, and sustained commitment to public safety and disaster resilience, and it would declare April 30, 2026, as "Richmond Emergency Communications Volunteer Day" in the City of Richmond. It would convey to them that the City supports the ongoing coordination between these volunteers and the Richmond Emergency Operations Center.
July 7, 2026
The proclamation would recognize the named volunteers for their extraordinary voluntary service, leadership, and public-spirited dedication of the individual Richmond radio operators:
DAVID SWANSON (East Richmond): For the past 20 years, David has focused on establishing a communications structure between neighborhood “Incident Command Posts” and the Richmond EOC. Since 2018, he has hosted monthly tests of the emergency radios at the Richmond Police Department Communications Center, teaches radio classes for the CERT Academy, and led the advocacy for the City Hall antenna.
XIA HOROWITZ (Carriage Hills): Following wildfire-related PSPS outages in 2020, Xia became a vital radio operator and leader. She hosts 6–10 radio nets each month, facilitates the “First Thursday” tests from the temporary EOC, organized biweekly neighborhood radio drills in Carriage Hills and Castro Heights, and mentors neighbors in GMRS systems.
ROB JOHNSON (El Sobrante / 94803): Recognizing communication challenges across Wildcat Ridge, Rob started the First Saturday 94803 Emergency Preparedness GMRS Net. He actively participates in Simulated Emergency Tests and provides critical training to neighbors on GMRS message protocols to strengthen the El Sobrante Valley network.
CHRIS HARWOOD (El Sobrante): Chris assists Contra Costa County EMCOMM nets as periodic HF and VHF net control. He has been instrumental in improving the Richmond EOC community radio station, implementing Winlink, and ensuring El Sobrante remains connected with stations west of the Berkeley Hills.
DAVE ROTH (Point Richmond): An original member of the antenna advocacy group, Dave is a vetted Richmond Police Department operator for the EOC auxiliary radios.
He co-led radio emergency training classes at the Richmond Senior Center and focuses on the vital task of differentiating what neighborhood incidents require EOC reporting.
DAVID NAISULER (North & East): An original advocate for the City Hall antenna and a vetted EOC operator, David has participated in Richmond CERT since 2015.
As Logistics Officer, he manages the security of the neighborhood equipment cache in the Burg Park container, which serves as the CERT ICP for the North & East neighborhood.
ALVIN TODD (North & East): A vetted operator for the EOC emergency radios, Alvin is highly skilled in digital radio communications. He has successfully run the Bay Shores Emergency First Saturday CERT radio net for many years, bridging communications for radio operators throughout the 94803 area.
July 7, 2026
KEVIN MULLALLEY (East Richmond Heights): A vetted EOC radio operator, Kevin serves as a scribe during EOC radio tests and drills. He volunteers for traffic control during local evacuation drills and supports CERT Fire Training at the Richmond Fire Training Center, bringing vital wildfire-danger awareness to his efforts.
DIANE RICHWINE (East Richmond): An original antenna advocacy group member, Diane has authored instructional materials and serves as Net Control Operator for various radio nets. She creates and leads exercises for the East Richmond Ready 2 React group and successfully integrates CERT graduates with their local neighborhood teams.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
Attachment 1 – Proclamation