Caribbean scanning freqs?

[llu727]

Does anyone have any known sites for finding VHF/UHF or whatever frequency listings for any of the Caribbean islands?
I have spent hours searching various groups with zero results. I travel to various places there from time to time, (Tough job, but someone has to do it!) and would like to try to smuggle a scanner through customs! Local laws not withstanding, I wonder if it would be worth it?
The only trunked systems I have seen are (or were before Ivan) were in the Cayman Islands. My immediate need is for St Lucia, but freqs from any island would be helpful

Thanks in advance
Bruce

 

[mciupa]

I was looking at www.cityfreq.com and they have listings for Puerto Rico
and the Virgin Islands.
The usual 150-170, 450-470 and some 850 stuff was listed.
Looks like you should put your scanner in search mode and store any
catches.

 

[Voyager]

Does anyone have any known sites for finding VHF/UHF or whatever frequency listings for any of the Caribbean islands?
I have spent hours searching various groups with zero results. I travel to various places there from time to time, (Tough job, but someone has to do it!) and would like to try to smuggle a scanner through customs! Local laws not withstanding, I wonder if it would be worth it?
The only trunked systems I have seen are (or were before Ivan) were in the Cayman Islands. My immediate need is for St Lucia, but freqs from any island would be helpful

Thanks in advance
Bruce

There's the FCC database, or the FCC search on this site. As above, this would only cover PR and the USVI, but that's "any island".

Of course, there is no garuntee the transmitters are still there. (Ivan)

Joe M.

 

[llu727]

RE: Caribbean Freqs

Thanks everyone, I guess I should have been more specific. I am looking for freqs for south and east of the Bahamas - non US islands. Puerto Rico and the VI are the easy ones!!
Thanks for the suggestions though

 

[llu727]

Boy.. I stepped in it again!!
How about if we change the last post to just non US islands!!
Should have looked at the map first.
Sigh

 

[SAR923]

Bruce,

The first thing to do is scan the marine frequencies. The local police routinely operate on marine band freqs in St Lucia, St Vincent, and Grenada (or what's left of it. ). When I was in St. Lucia several years ag, they were operating inthe 155 mHz range for both police and fire. St Vincent had a UHF system that covered the main island and the Grenadines but it was in the US business band frequencies around 462 mHz. Grenada has (had) a US Federal band plan that was set up for them by the Army after the invasion in 1984. It was in the 165 mHz range and had several repeaters for the main island and out to Cariacou and Petit Martinique. Most communication, particularly in Grenada, are handled by land line telephone to the local police district station. There were very few radio equipped vehicles and the only portables I ever saw were marine band radios. Communications in all the southern islands are pretty casual. I wouldn't be suprised if they are also using FRS/GMRS radios since they are cheap and it's easy to set up a GMTS repeater.

 

[llu727]

Thanks Jim for the info. it gives me a good place to start in the various islands.
That was kind of the original reason for my post. It does seem like things are very easy on some of the island. I really felt safe in the airport in Antigua when the security personnel carried Cobra FRS radios and cellphones!.
Another thing that was interesting in Antigua was the marine band does dual purpose as marine communications, and taxi radio.! I was walking past a docked cruise ship and there was a sign that said "For Taxi service, Call on Marine Channel 16"!
I suspect that most is done by cellphone anymore. The only Antenna I saw on a police building in St Lucia looked to be about a 40- 45 MHz ground plane that was at least 25 years old.
I guess whatever works, works!
Thanks everyone for their information, maybe I can fill in some blanks for someone next trip

 

[SAR923]

Bruce,
Indeed, things are much different in the Lesser Antilles than here. Marine 16 is used for just about everything. We used it from our boat to do everything from make dinner reservations, calling for a customs inspector, and hailing a cab. I haven't been back there since FRS radios have come on so strong but I'm not suprised that the boys at VC Bird Airport would be using FRS radios for security. I saw the same antenna at the main police station in Castries. One of the constables told me it was for their low band system that was abandoned in about 1985. I can remember hearing them on skip occasionally out here on the west coast. The new VHF-Hi system was all landline and microwave controlled. I wish I still had the frequencies but the list has vanished somewhere. I only remember that it was in the 155 mHz range.

St. Lucia is about the most sophisticated nation in the southern Caribbean in terms of communications infrastructure. From there north to Puerto Rico, there's excellent cell phone coverage. The cell phone coverage decreases as you head south and, other than the marine band, there was very little radio traffic.

We tried to report a theft in progress from another boat in the harbor at St. Georges, Grenada. We first called 911 on the cellphone, which was a waste of time. We then got hold of a constable at the main police station on channel 16. He said he was the only constable on duty but, if we wanted to come pick him up in our dinghy, he'd come out and collar the suspects. We told him the suspects would be long gone before we could arrange all that. :shock: Just one more reason we sail armed in the Caribbean.

 

[dmaharajh]

"St. Lucia is about the most sophisticated nation in the southern Caribbean in terms of communications infrastructure."

i would have to disagree with that statement. Trinidad will have to be the most sophisticated in terms of communications - Police/Fire/Military/EMS and commercial uses various 800MHz Trunking systems...including Digital - Motorola Astro. VHF/UHF commercial, marine, amateur, aeronautical (including Oceanic HF for regional control), 800 & 1.8GHz Cellular, 2.4GHz, Satellite and Microwave communications all exists.

 

[llu727]

Interesting to say the least. I guess that is why I like it down in that area so much.
I did get an email from another user from Trinidad that said he was working on figuring out 2 Mot trunked systems down there, one Astro.
So I guess things down there are catching up.
The only real systems I've been able to figure out were the two systems on Grand Cayman, one commercial and one either simulcast or smartzoned Motorola system for the government.
I generally dont have a lot of time when I am in these places so dont get to do a lot of looking. I think I like your way better!!

Thanks again

 

[SAR923]

"St. Lucia is about the most sophisticated nation in the southern Caribbean in terms of communications infrastructure."

i would have to disagree with that statement. Trinidad will have to be the most sophisticated in terms of communications - Police/Fire/Military/EMS and commercial uses various 800MHz Trunking systems...including Digital - Motorola Astro. VHF/UHF commercial, marine, amateur, aeronautical (including Oceanic HF for regional control), 800 & 1.8GHz Cellular, 2.4GHz, Satellite and Microwave communications all exists.

To most of us yachties, Trinidad and Barbados are in another world. Trinidad has a huge oil refining business and the oil companies have funded most of the radio systems you wrote about. Same thing in Barbados, where there's enough of a manufacturing economy to make good communications sytems important. The southern islands from Antigua down to Grenada were the ones I was thinking about when I made that statement.

 

[ecps92]

check out

check out the new forum at
http://www.radioreference.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=115

Does anyone have any known sites for finding VHF/UHF or whatever frequency listings for any of the Caribbean islands?
I have spent hours searching various groups with zero results. I travel to various places there from time to time, (Tough job, but someone has to do it!) and would like to try to smuggle a scanner through customs! Local laws not withstanding, I wonder if it would be worth it?
The only trunked systems I have seen are (or were before Ivan) were in the Cayman Islands. My immediate need is for St Lucia, but freqs from any island would be helpful

Thanks in advance
Bruce