Island County Amateur Radio Club members will learn about a major multi-state disaster preparedness exercise planned for 2016 at its monthly meeting next week.

The meeting is set for 9 a.m. Saturday, April 25 in the large conference room of the Whidbey Telecom WiFire building, 1651 East Main St., Freeland. The free meeting is open to the public.

Emergency communications specialist Michael Chaplin will familiarize Whidbey radio ham operators with the upcoming multi-state major earthquake exercise, which involves federal, state and local governments as well as private organizations and radio hams throughout the Pacific northwest. The operation will test preparation, coordination and communications capabilities during a major earthquake and tsunami.

The four-day exercise in June 2016, called Cascadia Rising 2016, will prepare government and private sector organizations to approach complex disaster operations as a joint team.

Chaplin, a federally licensed ham radio operator who resides in Ferndale, is the operational communications co-lead for the exercise. He has served as a communications officer for various city and county governments and is a retired Professor Emeritus of Iowa State University.

Volunteer radio license examiners will be on site to provide information and to administer federal ham radio operator exams for interested persons.

For details, visit www.w7avm.org or email k7na@w7avm.org.