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More important and urgent messages need to handled before less important ones, or messages of a routine nature. Four "Precedences" have been established to rank them for the operator to send. Obviously, EMERGENCY messages are always handled first, and all of them are cleared before lower importance or urgency traffic is handled. Less obvious to many people is that "WELFARE" messages rank higher than "ROUTINE".

In order from first-to-be-handled to lower precedence they are:

EMERGENCY, PRIORITY, WELFARE, and ROUTINE

Additionally, special conditions at specific disaster events may cause those managing the message traffic to allow welfare traffic to go OUT of the affected areas, but restrict welfare messages from being accepted IN to the affected area till a later time when conditions have improved.

There is quite a bit more to this subject, and it's important that every Amateur know this material, because any of us could become emergency communicators at almost any time, whether we work with ARES, RACES, or any other "EmComm" group on a regular basis. For full details, see: http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/pscm/sec2-ch6.html

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Handling instructions (HX) are quite useful in handling messages. They serve to convey any special instructions to handling and delivering operators. This "prosign," when used, is inserted in the message preamble between the precedence and the station of origin. Its use is optional with the originating stations, but once inserted is mandatory with all relaying stations. The following definitions apply:

HXA--(Followed by number) Collect landline delivery authorized by addressee within...miles. (If no number, authorization is unlimited.)
HXB--(Followed by number) Cancel message if not delivered within...hours of filing time; send a service message to the originating station, notifying of that.
HXC--Report date and time of delivery (TOD) to originating station.
HXD--Report to originating station the identity of station from which received, plus date and time. Report identity of station to which relayed, plus date and time, or if delivered report date, time and method of delivery.
HXE--Delivering station get reply from addressee, originate message back.
HXF--(Followed by number.) Hold delivery until...(date).
HXG--Delivery by mail or landline toll call not required. If toll or other expense involved, cancel message and send a service message to the originating station.

For full details, see: http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/pscm/sec2-ch6.html