Rainbow Family

[rfburns]

The Rainbow Family has their own communications at their event. They are supposed to be using 2M amateur equipment possibly moved up into the VHF band. Has anyone heard them yet?

Quite a bit of LEO traffic on 155.37 with rock throwing and confrontations. Some arrests and some traffic about U. S. Marshalls doing transports to Denver with arrestees.

 

[jimmnn]

The Rainbow Family has their own communications at their event. They are supposed to be using 2M amateur equipment possibly moved up into the VHF band. Has anyone heard them yet?

Quite a bit of LEO traffic on 155.37 with rock throwing and confrontations. Some arrests and some traffic about U. S. Marshalls doing transports to Denver with arrestees.

It was mentioned in one of the articles that they have many hams amoung them and set up a similiar mobile repeater setup in New Orleans area soon after the storm.

Jim<

 

[BCJ2]

Are these the people that were driving a funky bus and 2 other vans following? if it is they were here in La Junta at our walmart asking for money one of my buddies that is a state patrol said if is was on duty he would love to search there bus!! lol next mornig I went to walmart and I was told all them hippies in the bus and vans stole $3,500 worth stuff.

 

[rfburns]

It was probably part of them. Those are the kinds of vehicles that they drive. Many do not have driving priveleges due to DUI's and DUID's. You will see many of them hitch hiking with very young children strapped to their backs.

 

[jimmnn]

Now the state has also decided they need a new DTRS site in Northern Routt County within the next 48hrs if possible, especially interesting considering much of the local law in that area including RCSO is still on VHF.

I'll keep you posted will be in Steamboat next week.

Jim<

 

[mpg0515]

Now the state has also decided they need a new DTRS site in Northern Routt County within the next 48hrs if possible, especially interesting considering much of the local law in that area including RCSO is still on VHF.

I'll keep you posted will be in Steamboat next week.

Jim<

Ha,! I would sure like to see them put a site up in 48hrs. They can't even make a simple deadline on tax payer/grant money, on the regular/most needed sites..... I guess we will see???

Also, it has been a while since I have been over that way, but the DTRS coverage when I was there was horrible!! Hopefully some of that has been fixed. I remember listening to a 4XXX CSP unit on VHF the whole time I was there. I guess he gave up on his DTRS radio pretty quick in the day. This was a year or so ago.

 

[Todd-NG]

Are these the people that were driving a funky bus and 2 other vans following? if it is they were here in La Junta at our walmart asking for money one of my buddies that is a state patrol said if is was on duty he would love to search there bus!! lol next mornig I went to walmart and I was told all them hippies in the bus and vans stole $3,500 worth stuff.

That is interesting that Wal-Mart would know the next day exactly how much merchandise they lost to a particular group of thieves. Unless they actually catch them and total up what was in their possession it is nearly impossible to know just how much was lost. I should know, I work in retail and at times have worked loss prevention at our store.

Getting back on track with radio discussion: I don't think the state could even get FCC licenses for a new DTRS site within that 48 hour time limit. And again, who would be using it, like Jim said; most of the agencies in the area are still VHF. The only thing that I can think of is that they may be looking at the possibility of needing mutual aid from other agencies that are on the DTRS system.

 

[mpg0515]

That is interesting that Wal-Mart would know the next day exactly how much merchandise they lost to a particular group of thieves. Unless they actually catch them and total up what was in their possession it is nearly impossible to know just how much was lost. I should know, I work in retail and at times have worked loss prevention at our store.

Getting back on track with radio discussion: I don't think the state could even get FCC licenses for a new DTRS site within that 48 hour time limit. And again, who would be using it, like Jim said; most of the agencies in the area are still VHF. The only thing that I can think of is that they may be looking at the possibility of needing mutual aid from other agencies that are on the DTRS system.

I fully agree with you on both subjects..... I as well work in retail, the loss total would not be able to be determined long after the fact. Though I don't agree with these "hippies" and their so called lifestyle, they are sure gathering some attention to them.

 

[jimmnn]

The U.S. Forest Service estimates almost 5,000 people are in the Routt National Forest for the annual Rainbow gathering, which starts Saturday.

It is also estimated that up to 20,000 will attend the gathering, which is near Big Red Park about 35 miles north of Steamboat.

About 250 citations have been issued to Rainbow Family members since officers began citing the members for not having a special-use permit, Forest Service spokeswoman Denise Ottaviano said.

Ottaviano also said officers used pepper spray and nightclubs Monday to clear a large group of Rainbow Family members who surrounded them.

Ottaviano said one Rainbow Family member was arrested in the incident, although she did not know the person's name or what he or she was charged with. Ottaviano said three Forest Service officers sustained minor injuries in the confrontation.

Ottaviano said the incident began at about 5 p.m. as 15 Forest Service officers walked through the gathering. Ottaviano said the officers were attempting to contact group members about growing fire concerns when a group of more than 100 Rainbow participants surrounded the officers. Some of the officers were shoved by family members, she said.

Ottaviano said no Rainbow Family members were injured in the incident.

Forest Service officers have been accused of undue violence, as well. Marie Jensen, 50, a former child advocacy lawyer and current Steamboat Springs resident, said she witnessed an "extremely disturbing incident" on her way to visit the Rainbow gathering at about 10 a.m. Saturday morning.

Jensen said as she drove up to a Forest Service roadblock near the gathering site, a young woman, likely a Rainbow participant, was sitting cross-legged on the side of the road, with her hands behind her head and fingers interlaced. Jensen said a female Forest Service officer picked the young woman up by the belt loop and shirt collar, then "physically threw her into the ground, face-first."

"It was the most awful thing I've ever seen," Jensen said. "I couldn't believe this Forest Service lady was throwing this girl around. The officer was using unreasonable force in response to the situation -- it was way over the top. There was no eminent danger; there was nothing threatening."

Forest Service spokeswoman Diann Ritschard said Tuesday that she had "not heard one word" about the incident, and "had no idea" whether it happened.

Ottaviano said Forest Service officials will continue to patrol the camps and enforce fire bans.

Officers are "intermittently" manning a checkpoint at the entrance to the Rainbow gathering near Forest Service roads 500 and 550. Officers will continue to advise those who pass through the checkpoint that the gathering is illegal because the Rainbow Family's special-use permit was denied last week.

 

[cstockmyer]

Don't they have some sort of mobile DTRS site they could use temporarily? I thought in order to put up a permanent site they had to do all sorts of stuff, like an environmental survey? Not to mention aren't DTRS radio's different from VHF? So they'd have to issue new radios to patrol and dispatch? Or do I have it all backasswards?

 

[jimmnn]

Don't they have some sort of mobile DTRS site they could use temporarily? I thought in order to put up a permanent site they had to do all sorts of stuff, like an environmental survey? Not to mention aren't DTRS radio's different from VHF? So they'd have to issue new radios to patrol and dispatch? Or do I have it all backasswards?

Actually by radio tech, tower friend is onscene today with his helicopter installing a new site.

No existing VHF radios will not work but patches and interconnect switches are being put in place in the trailer to make VHF work onto the DTRS system using MAC channels.

Jim<

 

[cstockmyer]

Actually by radio tech, tower friend is onscene today with his helicopter installing a new site.

No existing VHF radios will not work but patches and interconnect switches are being put in place in the trailer to make VHF work onto the DTRS system using MAC channels.

Jim<

Interesting, thanks again Jim

 

[rfburns]

Troopers at the gathering had their in briefing at 1500 today. The following Troops are here determined by the fact that they have not switched to CSP Statewide and have stayed on their home TG. That's a good way to overload the one site (Buffalo) which provides some coverage in the area and to cause Troopers back home to get a system busy until a channel is open on Buffalo. I'm sure if CMD 9, Maj. Meredith, comes back he'll get them off of their home Troop TG. I thought they had learned from the Colorado Spgs funeral the bad things that happen when you drag your home TG with you to a large event/incident.

1D
6A
6C
3A
3C
1A
3B
2B
4C
4A
5A
Also MAC 13, 17 & 21 have been in use.

 

[BCJ2]

That is interesting that Wal-Mart would know the next day exactly how much merchandise they lost to a particular group of thieves. Unless they actually catch them and total up what was in their possession it is nearly impossible to know just how much was lost. I should know, I work in retail and at times have worked loss prevention at our store.

Getting back on track with radio discussion: I don't think the state could even get FCC licenses for a new DTRS site within that 48 hour time limit. And again, who would be using it, like Jim said; most of the agencies in the area are still VHF. The only thing that I can think of is that they may be looking at the possibility of needing mutual aid from other agencies that are on the DTRS system.

How they found out was these people tried to play it smart they opend the packages and left the empty carton with UPC ( the bar code) they found a lot of empty packages all over the store it was all small stuff like condoms and deordant razors, nicroette patches and alot of other stuff they must have heard we dont have a Loss Prevention in the store so its walmarts fault but they did add up the total from all the empty cartons and thats what the total came up to so the CO-manager went and ran the video tapes the next morning when all the employees found the empty cartons heck people steal from that walmart like crazy that is sad but like i say its there own fault for not haveing security I hate to see what inventory is gonna be like in August LOL

 

[rfburns]

CSP using State Ops 2 today with 2 man cars.

 

[quaoar]

Just heard that a radio team will be in Steamboat this PM to begin installation of equipment before the shed arrives. These guys had the local air tied up on my scanner for about ten minutes doing their planning live. It appears they plan to have a CDOT system up first this weekend to test the equipment.

Q

 

[rfburns]

Evidence of the Family's radio system.

Relayed radio messages helped gatherers find gaps in checkpoint's staffing on Forest Service Road 505 for newcomers to lug or push in everything from a 275-gallon water tank for the "Simply Wonderful" kitchen to the supplies for constructing a copper "peace pyramid."

 

[jimmnn]

New York Times Article Today

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/01/us/01rainbow.html

Jim<

 

[rfburns]

Airborne 3 working the event this morning with Maj. King on board.

Patrol still having a hard time understanding the units on DTR, "you're completely unreadable" etc and switching them to NLEEC.

I'm hearing them 100% so unless it is something with the Farwell site it seems like they could use a different antenna at Patrol and get rid of the multipath, high BER's and Faded Reference Sensitivity issues.

 

[jimmnn]

Airborne 3 working the event this morning with Maj. King on board.

Patrol still having a hard time understanding the units on DTR, "you're completely unreadable" etc and switching them to NLEEC.

I'm hearing them 100% so unless it is something with the Farwell site it seems like they could use a different antenna at Patrol and get rid of the multipath, high BER's and Faded Reference Sensitivity issues.

Actually AB 3 doing traffic now outside the area with the major still aboard on 154.905.

They must have an RF issue in that command trailer, I was sitting about 50 feet away and hearing both sides of the conversation fine, with just a "cheap" scanner. Got to love technology.

Also what seems like very poor interagency communication. The CP does not appear to be staffed with members from all services the way I have experienced in other such events.

CSP is about a mile away from the CP and the CSP "patrol" trailer does not seem to communicate well with other agencies, or even have a direct link to Routt County dispatch. I mean RCSO is monitoring Mac-18 but no one seems to be using it.

Example seizure patient last night that CSP came upon, they called there patrol trailer who called routt county on the phone, who paged north routt fire who responded to the troopers car which took about 15 minutes for the lone EMT to arrive, CSP trooper was parked in there fire station parking lot the whole time.

Another bad medical example this am for a back inj.

Jim<