About Us
What is LNRW?
Neighborhood Radio Watch programs use handheld, mobile, and base station radios in conjunction with one or more radio repeaters strategically placed to maximize coverage. These repeaters enable users to communicate with the entire user-base at once in real time; unlike cell phones that are only 1-to-1 or social media which can take minutes or hours to get a response to your message.
The radios and repeaters utilize the General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS). GMRS is a set of frequencies set aside by the FCC for family and community uses just like this. GMRS is easy to use for young and old alike. An inexpensive, test-free license covers an entire family for 10 years.
Lockwood NRW currently has a repeater located in the upper Shake Ridge corridor above Daffodil Hill labeled Lwood #1 and a second repeater in the lower corridor below Daffodil labeled Lwood #2. Check our events page for community education meetings and training sessions. We teach users how to get their license, how to get on the system, radio etiquette and everything else they need to know to stay informed through its use.
Who Are We?
LNRW is an all-volunteer group of people residing in and around the Lockwood area spanning the Shake Ridge Road corridor above the town of Volcano, Amador County, California
We have come together in order to provide local, mutually beneficial communications in case of fires, disasters, communication break-downs, or any local problems year-round that may affect our community.
While we are not affiliated with any county or local government agencies, we have garnered support from Amador County OES, Amador Fire Safe Council, and County District 5 Supervisor Brian Oneto.
Our aim is to provide neighbors with the ability to communicate with each other when events affecting our safety occur.
LNRW is funded by grants and donations in partnership with our 501(c)3 sponsor, Amador Community Foundation.
What Are We Doing?
As of August 2023, our current project is connecting our two repeaters, Lwood #1 above Daffodil Hill and Lwood #2 at Shake Ridge and Hale, to facilitate communications between the two repeaters. This will allow everyone to hear and respond across our entire area.
Since 2020 Lockwood Neighborhood Radio Watch has:
- Secured funds to pay for 2 radio repeaters and related equipment
- Tested locations and installed two Repeaters located at Amador Fire Station 115 at Hale & Shake Ridge and above Amador Fire Station 113 near the Fiddletown Y.
- Built out our website and social media content.
- Established working relationships with government and community organizations.
- Planned for community education meetings.
- Conducted weekly “safety-nets” with LNRW members for training and familiarity with using the radios.
Community Safety
Over 50% of home owners and 70% of renters depend entirely on cell phones to stay in touch with our friends, families and emergency services. Cell phones, in turn, depend upon billions of dollars of technology not to fail.
But the last few years have seen a dramatic rise in the frequency and intensity of fires, storms, and power failures – events that disrupt vital, life-saving phone and internet systems at the very moment we need them most. As recent PG&E power shutdowns and AT&T copper thefts have proven, Amador County is no exception to these outages. Even more critically according to CAL FIRE, our area is located in a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, making the need for reliable communications even greater.
How will you keep yourself, your family and friends safer in the case of fire or other emergency when telephone and internet services fail?
Our Lockwood Neighborhood Radio Watch program offers a backup solution.
On ABC 10
Watch an ABC 10 Sacramento report on El Dorado County Radio Watch group. We base our group on the same programs.
Ledger News Article
Lockwood Neighborhood Radio Watch is featured in the local Ledger-News.