Hamilton County Brush/Forest Fire

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richard4537312

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Hamilton County is presently fighting a huge brush/forest fire. Monitor mountain operations on Hamilton County Public Safety, Fireground 5. Have also heard mention of Firegrounds 7 and 8. State and/or federal forestry channels possibly in use also, because command has requested radios that will allow contact with forestry. Operations managed from Fallingwater Baptist Church. Dozers and water drops being used.
 

xlr8

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TDF

TDF 159.135 MHz. has been very active - especially in the afternoons - with all of the fires around. TDF is also using a forester/spotter in a fixed wing aircraft for aerial detection and coordination of ground units on these same frequencies. Also need to listen to the Unicom frequencies of the smaller airports around the area as this plane comes in to refuel and for crew biobreaks.
 

xlr8

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SE Tennessee Forest Fires - TDF, USFS, TNARNG, CHA

All of the TDF repeater outputs in Southeast Tennessee have been very active from just after sunrise to well after dark for the past week or so due to numerous forest fires on both the Cumberland Plateau and along the Appalachian mountains on both private and public properties. In addition, there is aerial detection and spotting underway by TDF Air 31 that can be heard on those repeaters as well as on TDF Air Operations 122.9250 MHz.

Division of Forestry Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference

There are currently two BAe-146 tankers which are being based out of the USFS Air Tanker Base at the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (CHA). These tankers are conducting aerial drops of fire retardant on various fires on both State and Federal lands. These tankers can be heard at times on 168.6500 MHz. USFS Flight Following and 164.1500 MHz. USFS Air to Ground. When near CHA, the tankers and other air traffic can be heard on the Approach/Departure, Tower, and Ground frequencies for the airport, 125.1000, 119.2000, 118.3000, and 121.7000 MHz, respectively. These tankers can be viewed from the road in front of the tanker base (Jubilee Drive off Brainerd Road/Lee Highway) when they are at the airport.

US Forest Service - Cherokee National Forest (TN) - The RadioReference Wiki

Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (CHA) Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference

There are also some Tennessee Army National Guard helicopters conducting water drops using Bambi buckets that they refill in Chickamauga Reservoir on various fires along Signal Mountain/Waldens Ridge in the Roberts Mill Road vicinity. However, my monitoring location is not near this vicinity so I don't know what frequencies these units are using to coordinate their fire fighting efforts. Stations located west of the Tennessee River may want to maintain a lookout for any related traffic.

It's been a long, dry fire season already with no rainfall in the foreseeable forecast. Keep these fire crews, other first responders, and their families in your thoughts and prayers as they fight these fires.
 

xlr8

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Hamilton County Update 08 NOV 2016

A Lockheed C-130 Hercules air tanker is now in use at CHA to make air drops on the Flipper Bend Fire on Signal Mountain, TN and other fires in the area. At one time today, both of the BAe-146 air tankers and the C-130 were in the air at the same time. A Rockwell Turbo Commander is being used for Air Attack to direct and supervise the aerial fire suppression efforts. At least two TN Army National Guard Blackhawks were also in use today making water drops with Bambi buckets. I was able to determine that the following frequencies were in use today:

122.1250 MHz. - Air Attack had to switch to this frequency this morning to avoid QRM on 122.9250 MHz. Aerial fire fighting units stayed on this frequency the rest of the day.

128.4250 MHz. - Chattanooga USFS Air Tanker Base frequency was in use with the base talking to the tankers enroute to/from CHA airport.
 
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