Dallas Texas Box Numbers

[TXFirefighter112]

Been hearing these for a while now but havent had time to post till now.

Anyway they used to us four digit numbers for boxes with the first 2 numbers being the 1st due station's number. Now they are using a 6 digit number but I dont know what the numbering system is now. I think they kept the station number as the first two digits but Im not sure. Anyone know anything about it?

 

[hiegtx]

Been hearing these for a while now but havent had time to post till now.

Anyway they used to us four digit numbers for boxes with the first 2 numbers being the 1st due station's number. Now they are using a 6 digit number but I dont know what the numbering system is now. I think they kept the station number as the first two digits but Im not sure. Anyone know anything about it?

Based on what I'm hearing on the scanner, they've kept the 4 digit system that was in use, where the first two digits were the station, the next two the geographic quadrant, etc.
It seems that the second pair of numbers (bringing the total to six) probably refine the box location within the quadrant. On areas that I'm familiar with, I'd hear the same box transmitted for locations that were multiple blocks apart. So, using only two digits for the fire alarm (other than the 'first in' station number) was probably too generalized.

Looking at boxes transmitted this evening, for known locations, the same station/quadrant pattern for the first four digits still fits.Right now, DFR is working a structure fire on Autumn Meadow Tr, box 400006. That's within a block and a half of the yet to be opened Station 40. However, the box numbers have already been renumbered in advance to split off from 49's & 46's.

 

[TXFirefighter112]

They had a fire tonight at 11909 Forrest, Im not sure but I think they said it was box 49-00-01. Forrest lane is no where near station 49.

 

[hiegtx]

They had a fire tonight at 11909 Forrest, Im not sure but I think they said it was box 49-00-01. Forrest lane is no where near station 49.

No, the Preston box (still working) is 41-00-01. In this case, as that is a shopping center, in 41's first up (they're on Royal, west of Preston), it may be a location specific of the center. It does not fit the quadrant pattern.
For working incidents, have you tried this site? Or this one?

Edit: I should note that during the time period the Preston box was first reported, there were also a couple of working boxes in 49's district. The dispatcher had his hands full & could have called Preston the wrong # at some point.

 

[TXFirefighter112]

No havent tried either of those sites. Didnt even know about them. I was going with the official cad page on the depts site and they dont have box numbers listed for some reason.

 

[hiegtx]

The 'official' site does not seem to work with Firefox, & doesn't work for me with Internet Explorer either (probably due to Norton; functions on my pc at work). The two alternate sites work with Firefox or the soon-to-be-abandoned Netscape, as well as IE.

 

[TXFirefighter112]

Im using IE7 and it works fine for me.

Oh, did they keep the same numbering for hirise boxes with the 9 in the 3rd digit spot?

 

[hiegtx]

Im using IE7 and it works fine for me.

Oh, did they keep the same numbering for hirise boxes with the 9 in the 3rd digit spot?

The Class A (high rise, high occupancy) boxes that I've paid attention to still have the 90 series number, so 41-9x-xx would be a high rise/high occupancy (like a nursing home or very large warehouse) in 41's district.

I'm on IE7 as well, & the official site won't work on either pc. Pretty sure that's tied into security setting changes made by Norton Internet Security, since the site quit working after a program update a couple versions back. I'm switching next renewal anyway. Until then, & probably after, I'll use the alternates. Not worth the trouble to track down which setting it is.

 

[bownasterm]

They had like 4 reported boxes and 1 working box at preston last night... I dont even pay attention to the box numbers when i can just get the address from the cad

 

[hiegtx]

They had like 4 reported boxes and 1 working box at preston last night... I dont even pay attention to the box numbers when i can just get the address from the cad

Yeah, the first two digits gives me the station, which tells me the general area of town.
Then the cad sites have the address. On the firerescuephotos site, you've got the address as well as a mapping link and appraisal district link to see what's going up in smoke.
Last night, there were three working fires, though only one of consequence, in an hour & a half in S/W Dallas, overlapping with the Preston box.

 

[KE5FZB]

According to the training the firefighters went through with the new MDT, the first two numbers are the numbers of the first due company, the next two are for the closest station, and the last two are just to narrow the playing field. For some reason it does not show up like that on the sites that were listed in earlier posts.

 

[TXFirefighter112]

According to the training the firefighters went through with the new MDT, the first two numbers are the numbers of the first due company, the next two are for the closest station, and the last two are just to narrow the playing field. For some reason it does not show up like that on the sites that were listed in earlier posts.

That cant be right. Unit numbers are based on station numbers and therefore if, say Engine 13 was first due to a box then station 13 is the closest station. Thus all box numbers for 13's repsonse area would be 13-13-XX, all boxes for Engine 5 would be 05-05-XX and so forth.

 

[bownasterm]

Actually now you can look it up on google earth/google street view even better!

 

[hiegtx]

That cant be right. Unit numbers are based on station numbers and therefore if, say Engine 13 was first due to a box then station 13 is the closest station. Thus all box numbers for 13's repsonse area would be 13-13-XX, all boxes for Engine 5 would be 05-05-XX and so forth.

I'd say you're correct.
They seem to be rearranging some of the boxes. I've heard some that fit the quadrant pattern:
One recent box, in 25's first up, was 2575xx (forgot what the last two were). But the street address would have been in their NW quadrant, so the second two digits (75) would fit.

But I'm also hearing (on the scanner) a number of boxes dispatched verbally as (station)-00-xx, where the address, I know from familiarity, is too far away from the station itself to be dispatched as a "station" box. In the quadrant system, a box at (& maybe very near?) the station's address was the station # plus 00. So box 4100 would have been a box at 41 station.

Looking at the firerescuephotos active incidents page right now, there's a mix of box numbers. Some fit the old pattern (first due station)-(quadrant)-xx, the rest are station-00-xx. Split about 50/50. There are no working structure fires right now, just accidents, ems runs, etc. But structure fires have also become a mix of quadrant based & apparent non-quadrant. Obviously, they are doing something to the numbering system, but at this point, I don't see what they are trying to accomplish.