1976 The Southeast Hampshire RAYNET (SEHR) Group was formed.
Early assistance with communications was provided at community events such as the Southsea Show, and Navy Days, working on behalf of British Red Cross Society or St John Ambulance. The Group also monitored water levels on Hayling Island for the Police in the early days, as there was, at that time, a problem with the drains being affected by high levels of seawater.
1986 Callsign G1SEH was issued to the Group.
1988 The Group’s long association with Hampshire County Council and the County Emergency Planning Unit began. Through contact with them also came contact with the Borough and District Councils.
At about this time the Group was given exclusive use of a room at Fort Widley for radio operations.
1990 East Hampshire District Council (EHDC) purchased a second-hand caravan for the Group’s use. After conversion, this was used for many years as a mobile radio control unit.
1992 SEHR became a member group of the newly formed Radio Amateurs’ Emergency Network (known as ‘ The Network’).
1994 The Group became affiliated to the Radio Society of Great Britain.
1997 EHDC offered the Group a landrover that had been used by them for bridleway maintenance etc.
1997 After some 700+ man-hours of conversion by a small number of members, and funded by EHDC, the landrover became operational as the Forward Control Vehicle.
1997 Portsmouth City Council became a unitary authority and a close working relationship began between PCC and SEHR.
1999 Our mobile mast trailer became operational. With the exception of the actual 60ft mast (which cost the Group the price of a pint!), this was built from scratch onto a caravan chassis by the team involved in the landrover project.
In the same year the Group took the decision to set up a Health and Safety team to produce an H&S policy for the Group. In due course this led to the production of training and equipment handbooks for the Group’s major pieces of equipment such as the landrover, trailer mast and Fort Widley.
1999 Along with the other Hampshire Groups, and many throughout the UK, SEHR was deployed on New Years Eve as part of the Y2K concerns. Stations were operational until after midnight at many of the county’s emergency services control rooms but the millennium bug did not appear!
2001 SEHR was granted permission to install a permanent RAYNET aerial at the Solent Coastguard Maritime Rescue Sub Centre. This was the first emergency service operations room in Hampshire to be so equipped.
The Group’s APRS digipeater, callsign MB7UP, came on air from Fort Widley.
2003 The installation and equipment at Fort Widley was updated and expanded to provide a comprehensive, ready-to-use, control facility.
2005 The Group obtained the callsign M0SEH for use with the Forward Control Vehicle, or at other control locations when FortWidley is also in use.
Communications assistance was provided to Portsmouth City Council for both days of the Trafalgar 200 celebrations in October.
2007 The Callsign M0RCV was obtained for use with the “new” control caravan. This call could be sent as “Mike Zero RAYNET Control Vehicle”.