SA Firefighter
General Discussion => Country Fire Service => Topic started by: Mike on February 21, 2006, 12:16:40 PM
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Just a thought:
How many brigades had Motorola VHF portables before the introduction of GRN and VHF narrow band?
Did you ever wonder why they didnt opt to stay with that particular model of radio. It would have halved the number of chargers out there, as they use the same battery........ put a bit of heatshrink on the antenna and they are easily identifiable as VHF....
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Try not to think Mike, thinking and the c.f.s don't suit each other.
Good idea though.
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I know of some groups who kept some old radios and had the new band plan put in them... can't mention which groups because they are hanging onto the radios for grim death..
Rightly so ... two radios per truck is inadequate. Keeping a few has made it possible to have one for a fire fighting team one for the incident controller or OIC of the truck and one for a pumpy or goffer.
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Our brigade was supposed to keep one of the old VHF portables that was donated by the Kalangadoo Lions or Apex club not sure which one but for some reason our captain gave it to the group forgetting that it belonged to the Kalangadoo brigade and not the Wattle Range Group :cry:
I can tell you this my dad,the now retired 1st lieutenant, myself and my mum were absoulutely p***** off because that was a donated VHF portable and not a CFS issued one :x
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Our brigade was supposed to keep one of the old VHF portables that was donated by the Kalangadoo Lions or Apex club not sure which one but for some reason our captain gave it to the group forgetting that it belonged to the Kalangadoo brigade and not the Wattle Range Group :cry:
I can tell you this my dad,the now retired 1st lieutenant, myself and my mum were absoulutely p***** off because that was a donated VHF portable and not a CFS issued one :x
Trust this was one of the ones that could be re-programmed, otherwise it would have only been good as a paper weight, as the old frequencies that CFS once used are no longer available to CFS.
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The VHF Portable that was donated to our brigade had the same frequencies and was know as Kalangadoo Portable 2 as Portable 1 was issued by the Penola Group
Even though the old frequencies now are deemed illegal to voice transmit on the donated VHF portable would have been either put on display in the Forest & Logging museum at Nangwarry or framed in a special glass box as memorabilia
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i don't like our portable GRN radios as i think they are too big and bulky. if they were closer to the size of the VHF radios then i think that would be better.
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i don't like our portable GRN radios as i think they are too big and bulky. if they were closer to the size of the VHF radios then i think that would be better.
Ain't it a bugga when you get something for nothing, it works perfectly but it ain't quite right :evil:
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I think that it's appalling that we don't have enough radios of any description ie VHF and especially GRN portables..and they are saying that we can't have any more...nothing like standard of fire cover!
We currently have 1 portable for our brigade and 2 VHF hand helds...
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having that few radios is just plain dangerous. our brigade is only small but we have 2 portables and like 4-5 VHF's. anything less is stupid.
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1 GRN and 3 VHF for 22s 24s etc
1 GRN and 2 VHF for QAV and 14s.....
and a GRN for the trust Cart as well....
and to think there were going to be one less per truck in the initial rollout for VHF... had to jump up and down about that one.
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Due to being an EMA brigade we have 2 x GRN portables and 3 x VHF portables on each truck.
This is due to the fact MFS dont have VHF so we have to give them one when we get to the scene and the fact that we have to be on our GRN talkgroup + be on MFS GRN 150 + MFS GRN fireground channel.
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Due to being an EMA brigade we have 2 x GRN portables and 3 x VHF portables on each truck.
This is due to the fact MFS dont have VHF so we have to give them one when we get to the scene and the fact that we have to be on our GRN talkgroup + be on MFS GRN 150 + MFS GRN fireground channel.
For the MFS & CFS dual response type incident, why can't a multi-agency talkgroup be requested via SCC & then SAPOL Commcen ?
Then everyone is using the same GRN talkgroup at the incident without having to handle three GRN physical radio's.
Interested to mearn more about CFS SOP's, thus the question.
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what scares me more is that we can't get anymore GRN portables...period...don't make them, can't buy them etc...what happens if they start to fail..and we don't have enough NOW...
we didn't get our full roll out either...as we were the last ones...
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I dont think ive ever been to a job over the years where a Multi agency talk group was used..
ANy one ?
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I dont think ive ever been to a job over the years where a Multi agency talk group was used..
ANy one ?
Used often for SES major incidents where multi-agencies are involved (eg glenelg flood, virginia flood, onkaparinga george search, etc). I believe originally designed so that responders to country RCR incidents could all talk together without using three different talkgroups on the GRN towers.
Muti-agency talkgroups were definitely used during Black Tuesday as part of the command & control structure via SEOC (State Emergency Operations Centre).
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I dont think ive ever been to a job over the years where a Multi agency talk group was used.
I wasn't there personally but on Black Tuesday at Mt osmond i think CFS used a multi agency talk group with MFS and SAPOL. probably SAAS too.
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We've used a multi-agency talkgroup a number of times but usually at an MVA where rescue 51 is involved, and we use it for chopper landings in Goolwa when we get called to them.
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Whenever you setup a landing zone for a helicopter GRN multi agency talkgroup 020 should be monitored, the pilots know this is the assigned talkgroup to talk to the ground crews on and will often try and call someone to find out current weather conditions.
Apart from that Multi Agency talkgroups will now be used in Region 1 at any 3rd alarm fire and above for Command & Control, this is because the M.A. talkgroups have a higher priority in the network and will hopefully alleviate some of the busies we have been seeing. This has already happened at a number of fires in January and seemed to work well.
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If we started giving each fire unit around SA 2 truck radios and 2 portables theres gonna be none for other services like SAAS,SAPOL and interstate fire services who come to help over here
By giving 2 radios to each brigade there are plenty of spares left for when extra radios are needed to be issued
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Due to being an EMA brigade we have 2 x GRN portables and 3 x VHF portables on each truck.
This is due to the fact MFS dont have VHF so we have to give them one when we get to the scene and the fact that we have to be on our GRN talkgroup + be on MFS GRN 150 + MFS GRN fireground channel.
For the MFS & CFS dual response type incident, why can't a multi-agency talkgroup be requested via SCC & then SAPOL Commcen ?
Then everyone is using the same GRN talkgroup at the incident without having to handle three GRN physical radio's.
Interested to mearn more about CFS SOP's, thus the question.
You do realise how often CFS respond with MFS... this would be a major PITA.
Robert what everyone is talking about is one 'base' GRN and 'base' VHF in each truck along with a portable GRN and two VHF portables... i dont see how you could possibly get along without that few radios and preferance would be given to having more VHFs at least..
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The only problem with setting up a multi agency talkgroup is that wouldn't achieve anything because all that would do is replace the M.F.S fireground talkgroup, the best way to solve the problem is to give M.F.S a VHF main radio and 1 x portable.
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btw badjas; CFS and MFS can both acess the same talkgroups... unlike SES/fire service nto being able to... and vice versa.
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what scares me more is that we can't get anymore GRN portables...period...don't make them, can't buy them etc...what happens if they start to fail..and we don't have enough NOW...
we didn't get our full roll out either...as we were the last ones...
Keep in mind that the GRN contract is almost up and CFS are looking at replacing all GRN's with a different model, and maybe digital. Although this won't be for 2-3 years prehaps this is why they are not issuing new/more equipment. :? Doesn't help us now tho :cry:
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If we started giving each fire unit around SA 2 truck radios and 2 portables theres gonna be none for other services like SAAS,SAPOL and interstate fire services who come to help over here
By giving 2 radios to each brigade there are plenty of spares left for when extra radios are needed to be issued
Why would you give a radio to SAPOL, SAAS etc - they have their own, hence the use of the MA talkgroup!!!
As for interstate fire services, those along the boarder have CFS frequencies as CFS have theirs (only in brigades directly adjacent the boarder) and if more come in then CFS at a state and regional level have spare radios to issue - much the same as other services have had when we have gone to their states. Although in NSW we operated on our own frequencies/radios and had the sector/divisional commander monitor and use their and relay the appropriate information
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I was referring to the New CFS Narrow Band VHF Radios ozfire
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I was referring to the New CFS Narrow Band VHF Radios ozfire
Excellent- however still can't see why SAAS or SAPOL would need VHF, when they can communicate on GRN - with their focus being communication with officers, not fire fighters on the line.
As for VHF - CFA have access as do I believe NSWRFS to some of our frequencies enabling cross service communications
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The new vhf works well as we founf out helping the cfa with the fire's at edenhope last month we where able to talk to their appliances and it worked better tha grn as we where out of range of the grn tower...
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As for VHF - CFA have access as do I believe NSWRFS to some of our frequencies enabling cross service communications
They are not 'our frequencies'. These VHF narrowband frequencies have been allocated nationally by the national licensing authority to emergency services. Along the SA/VIC border some of the users are, NRE, CFA, CFS, ForestrySA and probably more. That is the reason that RFS can use them locally when they come and is a little bit of sense in the total confusion that is the huge number of differing communication systems across the nation.
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some standardisation would be good. but hey, like thats going to happen! does anyone know what comms systems CFA and RFS use?
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Both CFA and RFS use their own Government Radio Network. Of course none of which are compatible with anyone else. Once again the lines on the map make all the difference.
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interesting. maybe we should have two national channels on our GRN systems where we can communicate inter agency without going on VHF at large incidents. Then for example Murray bridge 24 could speak direct with the truck behind him, Ararat 24.
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interesting. maybe we should have two national channels on our GRN systems where we can communicate inter agency without going on VHF at large incidents. Then for example Murray bridge 24 could speak direct with the truck behind him, Ararat 24.
Spoke to a techo in Sydney who said that the separate state-based GRN systems could be linked by common talkgroups, but the cost would be enormous.
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yeah plus the red tape. God what was i thinking, a logical system?!?! duh!
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The contract is up soon so we will see what we get next,i thing i still have some cans and string in the shed :lol:
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I reckon the string might get tangled though!!
We should just have cadets on bikes relay messages like in the war days!! :-P
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And Telstra may have a few spare phone booths we could install :roll: