metro New Orleans scanning

[JamesPrine]

Hello all!

I'm currently based on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain in Ponchatoula, roughly halfway between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. I used to live in New Orleans and worked for the New Orleans Police Department as well. Damn Katrina! <g>

I programmed my 396XT via Freescan with the LWIN channels I was interested in, particularly all metro New Orleans law enforcement including the NOPD, Jefferson Parish, Gretna, Causeway, Troop "B", St. Bernard, etc.

I also programmed in "Pan Am", having no idea what it was. Glad I did...yesterday, I heard a State "B" Trooper calling in a vehicular accident and very shortly afterward heard the NOFD dispatching various units to it on the "Pan Am" channels, and then NOPD dispatched a unit via one of their channels. Very interesting.

I was also amazed that while I could often listen to crystal-clear comms on the St. Bernard and sometimes on the JPSO channels (from Ponchatoula), I was only able to listen to NOPD Traffic units the day before Mardi Gras; I suspected they were escorting parade floats over the Greater New Orleans bridge from the west bank?

I have never heard any traffic on the North or South Simulcast frequencies; do I somehow need them for monitoring law enforcement traffic in New Orleans? Or can I dump them and use other channels more suiting to my interests?

I also saw "Trailer XXX" channels...anyone have any idea who these are?

Thanks for any information, and happy scanning!

 

[WooBuff]

The ability to monitor agencies at your distance will be limited to those with which a portable unit has affiliated, or connected, to a site on the LWIN network. The Pan Am site you mentioned is located on the Pan American Life Building, at 601 Poydras Street, in downtown New Orleans. If you are monitoring LWIN utilizing that site, you should receive the vast majority of traffic from the New Orleans area, since downtown users will most likely have affiliated to that site.

If you are monitoring traffic on the Hammond site, you will only receive radio traffic from New Orleans area agencies who have a user in the Hammond area with that channel selected on their a radio. For example, I often pick up the St Bernard and Kenner fire dispatch channels, along with Gretna Patrol-1, on the Hammond site, . This indicates to me that individuals from these agencies are monitoring their dispatch channels while at home in the South Tangipahoa area.

The simulcast sites have multiple locations utilizing synchronized frequencies. Many scanners have problems monitoring these sites if more than one is within range.

The key to monitoring distant agencies is to restrict the control channels you program to those with which the greatest likelihood of affiliation is possible. You may want to configure the LWIN system twice, once using the metro NOLA control channels and another using the northshore control channels.

The Trailer XXX channels refer to the mobile sites that are mounted on a trailer with a telescoping mast. http://gohsep.la.gov/interop/docs/Port700MHzTralfactsheetr.pdf They are used to provide supplemental capacity during disasters or major events. I watched them set up an old version of these on the Oaklawn overpass the day after Katrina struck.

Did you write “The Real Police”?

 

[JamesPrine]

Excellent! You answered all my questions more than adequately, and also filled in some other areas I was curious about. Thank you most sincerely.

to tell the truth, when I heard the NOPD dispatching traffic and field units responding, I felt like plugged in again, to the real world <g>.

Yessir, I wrote THE REAL POLICE: STORIES FROM THE CRESCENT CITY and TALES FROM THE ID, and have been suitably disciplined for these transgressions to order, decency, and the American Way LOL.

Thanks again for the swift reply and excellent information!