Okaloosa County EMS has moved over to the DarkSide (SLERS)

[wise871]

Well as of 1 October, Okaloosa County EMS can no longer be heard on 462.950. I was listening to the channel the other day and all I'm picking up are the dispatch tones. There is no longer audio coming from the old channel. Not sure if there using the old channel for pager tone-outs only. The Fire department or the Sheriff's office is next, not sure when. I still need to see how there communicating with the hospitals.

I also know that this area depends heavily on Mutual Aid partnership with volunteer fire departments and the neighboring counties. They will either have to carry extra radios or information will have to be done through dispatch. Since the FHP went on SLERS, you can hear the pain it is relaying information between FHP and local agencies. Time was lost and people got away during pursuits and mutual aid assistance because there was no direct communication between patrol units.

Today I was listen to south fire and they had to relay paient information to ems. Before, EMS was able to simply switch over to monitor while enroute.

 

[wwhitby]

Interoperability at its finest :twisted:

IMHO, SLERS seems to be another system like SouthernLinc. When it comes out, its the best thing since sliced bread. Everyone wants to go to it since its cheaper and you've got better coverage. Then people start finding out that its not all that its cracked up to be.....

Warren

 

[sjcscanner]

=( sorry man.

 

[Rover]

I feel your pain. I will be losing a local EMS soon as they switch over to a digital system. Not sure if I will be able too hear them in the future. But try this if you haven't: Devote about 100 channels too all published FCC EMS allocations UHF/VHF and see what pops up. I scan all the med channels including the new ones, and FCC VHF EMS allocations and even look around for other possible frequencies. You might be supprised what pops -up. A local EMS system (Health central) which had switched too Orange County TRS, I found dispatching on a ood ball "new " EMS med channel. I have also picked up skip at times on VHF from around the state and at times heard different stuff as varies units have used old channels for occasional comms. I think wiki has a list of the FCC allocations for EMS on the website.
Just a thought 73 + Good Luck Ray KB4OMO

http://wiki.radioreference.com/index.php/Emergency_Medical_Services_Radio

 

[JohnnyGalaga]

Dammit Dammit Dammit

 

[Bolt21]

Umm, I thought it was supposed to be the S(Law)(Enforcement)RS....

 

[gcr33]

Just remember it's not free. TYCO toys I mean TYCO Electronics has a fixed price to operate the system for the state. When they add users to the system they can gain revenue. Remember when they thought they could sell space to anyone?

The current users are under a gag order. Those that you can talk to in confidence wish they could go back. The encryption thing is just something they sold the state on as an add on for security. After all you need security for calls like Sig 16 ; 1-50 SR 50 etc.

At many sites through out the state there are only a couple of channels this obviously is not enough capacity to add a lot of people. The radios are sole source no EF Johnson competition.

 

[wwhitby]

I find it very strange that the users are under a gag order. Users won't have the ESK key or the encryption key, so what harm would it be to discuss the system?

Of course if someone wants to keep problems hidden, a gag order would be a good way to do that :twisted:

Warren

 

[ElroyJetson]

I have never heard that the users are under a gag order, but I do know that some users say the system is so bad it makes them gag.

Can you provide a reference for the alleged gag order? It seems a bit hard to believe...


Elroy

 

[gcr33]

Maybe you never heard of it but it's part of the agreement.

This way the public can't get to know how their tax dollars were wasted in buying a system, having it installed and working in over 1/2 the population of the state and then M-A Comm critical communications came in and sold the state a bill of goods. Batwing was not given a fair shake. After all the radios were manufactured right in the State of Florida at the Plantation plant. Now no radios are made there.

In private again the users are complaining about it but cannot go public through the PBA/FOP etc.

 

[grem467]

Maybe you never heard of it but it's part of the agreement.

This way the public can't get to know how their tax dollars were wasted in buying a system, having it installed and working in over 1/2 the population of the state and then M-A Comm critical communications came in and sold the state a bill of goods. Batwing was not given a fair shake. After all the radios were manufactured right in the State of Florida at the Plantation plant. Now no radios are made there.

In private again the users are complaining about it but cannot go public through the PBA/FOP etc.

proof?

 

[N4DES]

Gene is correct, the FHP and FWC Brass and prior FHP technical staff were required to sign an NDA when the system was being installed and during the acceptance phase. I don't know if the rank and file are still required to sign it as an emplyment requirement but I do know the local FHP staff were required to sign it.

 

[jerk]

Gene is correct, the FHP and FWC Brass and prior FHP technical staff were required to sign an NDA when the system was being installed and during the acceptance phase. I don't know if the rank and file are still required to sign it as an emplyment requirement but I do know the local FHP staff were required to sign it.

The rank file are probably covered under being employees and their handbook, which probably says something like they cannot speak for their "department" which effectively means they cannot speak without discipline resulting if critical of the system or even if positive comments are made.

What a rotten way to do business.

 

[wwhitby]

The rank file are probably covered under being employees and their handbook, which probably says something like they cannot speak for their "department" which effectively means they cannot speak without discipline resulting if critical of the system or even if positive comments are made.

What a rotten way to do business.

This is interesting, because it was the individual police officers and fire fighters complaining to their unions that helped kill Birmingham, Alabama's use of SouthernLinc for public safety communications.

Warren

 

[BMT]

Wasn't MACOM the first system to go down in NOLA??

BMT

 

[jerk]

This is interesting, because it was the individual police officers and fire fighters complaining to their unions that helped kill Birmingham, Alabama's use of SouthernLinc for public safety communications.

Warren

First, I'm just speculating... and second, I'm talking about going public. I'm sure you can complain through the union about problems. But going public, or not using the channels as they say, might cause problems.

 

[firemedic2150]

I have to agree with 2 points that where made earlier, Bolt21 pointed out that this was set up from the start as a law enforcement only system hence the (S)tate (L)aw (E)nforcement (R)adio (S)ystem acromym, And like gcr33 said most sites only have a few channels, so if you get something good going somone will get bumped. And as far as interoperability, even if everyone is on the same system if they do not have each others talkgroups or some type of mutual-aid groups programmed in their radios you might as well be on Mars, or at least another county.

MMc.

 

[wise871]

What makes it so bad now is the old radios were all programmed with other agencies frequencies. You were always able to hear Santa Rosa Sheriff come up on Okaloosa Sheriff's frequency when they needed assistance. Response time was very good between all the agencies. What was also nice, most patrol units had more then one radio mounted in there units. Let’s say that Crestview police is chasing some one down or responding to a traffic accident or even setting up a perimeter. You would always hear the deputy come over the radio saying he is monitoring the activity on the PD channel.

Here is what the channel line up is for the OCSO radios.
Chan 1 OCSO North
Chan 2 OCSO South
Chan 3 TAC1 North
Chan 4 TAC2 South
Chan 5 E Cha North and South
Chan 6 Posse Talk around
Chan 7 Civil Process
Chan 8 FWB PD
Chan 9 Niceville PD
Chan 10 Valp PD
Chan 11 Crestview PD
Chan 12 Posse Repeater
Chan 13 WCSO North
Chan 14 WCSO South
Chan 15 SRCO SO North
Chan 16 SRCO SO South

So much for inter-agency assistance. I’m sure they will still key an old radio laying around but what a pain.

 

[gccflscan]

I find it very strange that the users are under a gag order. Users won't have the ESK key or the encryption key, so what harm would it be to discuss the system?

Of course if someone wants to keep problems hidden, a gag order would be a good way to do that :twisted:

SLERS has been a zombie from the get go.

Coverage has been an issue from the start. Doesn't help that you flat out lied and perform the coverage tests in ANALOG.

Failure of Emergency activation during a trooper involved shooting, non fatal, thanfully.

Capacity is another issue. Many sites do not have enough channels to support the current users let alone any others.

Firmware issues and issues with wide area roaming, even worse when its on border areas between gateways. Example: Polk, Orange, Lake, Osceola

Storm surviability... yeah, right... lets see you have many sites which were BUILT with only T1 connections, no microwave. Oh and that microwave it failed due to alignment problems (improper installation) from the storms, and then theres the generators, NEW INSTALLS, that failed and/or ran out of fuel or had no fuel or insufficent fuel to operate.

Interoperability, NONE.

The states goal is to ram rod moving all public safety to it, arm twisting as they go along. They are heavily lobbying areas which are currently EDACS already to turn their sites into SLERS roaming sites by converting to ProVoice, ESK and encryption.

SLERS is a waste.