Some Help Please

[Unlimited]

I know I've posted this before.

But I'm having the same issue with my scanner. When I scan just Sioux Falls fire only. And they get dispatched to a medical call, I only hear when the truck is en-route. And sometimes I will hear the update. The only time I hear medicals over the fire dispatch is when Rural/Metro is code 5. Anyone have any idea why this is? If I scan EMS, I will hear it but there are times when I just want to scan fire only or something.

Also, I have 155.88 programmed in as well. It goes off before some calls for the fire department and then sometimes it goes off at random times with no dispatcher talking after the tones. Anyone have an idea why that is possibly?

Thanks, hopefully someone might know.

 

[LarrySC]

I looked at the SD trunking and your local freqs. Complicated to say the least. Maybe you are monitoring a simulcast freq since you dont get the mobiles. You need to post the System, Talkgroups, and conventional freqs in your program along with the type scanner you are using. With this data maybe someone can help you.

 

[Unlimited]

I looked at the SD trunking and your local freqs. Complicated to say the least. Maybe you are monitoring a simulcast freq since you dont get the mobiles. You need to post the System, Talkgroups, and conventional freqs in your program along with the type scanner you are using. With this data maybe someone can help you.

I'm monitoring tower Sioux Falls (44) with the custom tables added into it. The talk-groups are:

Fire
Fire Channel 1 - 23472
Fire Channel 2 - 23488
Fire Channel 3 - 23504
Fire Channel 4 - 23520
Fire Channel 5 - 23536
Fire Dispatch (Ch. 6) - 23552

Rural/Metro
Rural/Metro - 23696
Rural/Metro - 29600

Those are the only one's I'm having issues with, I will get the voice for structure fires, fire alarms, and other type of fire calls. But I will not get medical calls over the fire dispatch channel; I do but it is very rare. There are times I want to scan just fire only and would like to hear all the calls and just not the truck that is responding to a medical. I also have 155.88 for the paging garble. I have a RadioShack Pro-106.

 

[LarrySC]

Have you tried a "WILDCARD" at the end of your Talk Group List. ?? There must be one that you are missing. In my area we find new talk groups being added to a system without notice.

 

[Unlimited]

Have you tried a "WILDCARD" at the end of your Talk Group List. ?? There must be one that you are missing. In my area we find new talk groups being added to a system without notice.

No, not sure what a wild card would be to be honest. I know it sounds kinda picky, but I kinda of just want to listen to like fire only at times. I know Sioux Falls Fire uses CH. 6 for its dispatches, could they use another possibly?

 

[LarrySC]

When you enter a NEW ITEM in a trunking ID List where the tab says "Group or Radio ID" a pop up shows "WildCard" Shift and down arrow that to the bottom of List. If the system has any new ID's it will come up there. I would suggest you name "Wildcard" to read "New ID". The Wildcard places the scanner in the "OPEN" mode so you can hear everything on the system tower near you. Its a great feature. Larry

 

[NDRADIONUT]

23696 SFLS MET EMS Sioux Falls Metro EMS Dispatch
29568 SFLS EMS Sioux Falls Medical/EMS EMS-Tac
29600 SFLS EMS RM Sioux Falls Rural Metro EMS - 2 Dispatch
30960 SFLS Sioux Falls Multi-Tac

 

[LarrySC]

Since I didnt get a reply on Wildcard setup then I assume you programmed by hand. The object of software is being able to SEE all of the elements of programming for each Bank you are setting up. Good Luck.

 

[Unlimited]

I wasn't able to get on recently. Well a EMS call came in tonight and I put the wildcard on it's on scanlist and turned it on, no fire channel appeared on the wildcard while it was being dispatched. I am able to get medical calls on the scanner over fire dispatch like maybe once or twice a month. Even when I am just scanning fire only, I will just hear the truck enroute to the call. Never the dispatch for the medicals. That's what Im confused on. I will hear medicals very rare on fire dispatch, but sometimes I do. What I don't really get is why that would be?

 

[NDRADIONUT]

Maybe the fire calls are on fire disp. And medical calls on ems disp.....

 

[Unlimited]

Maybe the fire calls are on fire disp. And medical calls on ems disp.....

But then I don't get how fire would hear the calls as well. I've picked up some medical dispatches on the fire channel before, but not a lot. That's the part I don't get.

*Also, say if I bought a new antenna, like a Diamond RH77CA, could that possibly help?

 

[NDRADIONUT]

Im guessing they are using digital pagers and you arent hearing that part....

 

[datainmotion]

Wirelessly posted (Clacking rocks together: Mozilla/5.0 (Linux; U; Android 2.3.4; en-us; DROID X2 Build/4.5.1A-DTN-150-30) AppleWebKit/533.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile Safari/533.1)

Is it possible they are being dispatched via CAD straight to their mobile computers (assuming they have them)?

 

[Unlimited]

I'm not too sure with how they operate with radios and things. But just in the past few hours I've had it on, there has been two on the Fire Dispatch and one on the medical channel as well. That's the part I'm not getting, I will get them over the fire channel sometimes.

Could it be maybe how the dispatcher pushes the button or something. Or could it also be even how close I am to one of the stations? I live closer to the EMS station than I do to the Fire Station.

 

[LarrySC]

With todays level of radio technology I would assume they use MDT computers along with two-way radio. The dispatch is received by computer and aux comms are 800 Trunking. The PRO-106 should receive 800 with good signal level up to 15 miles before it starts to fade, unless you live in a valley. An outside antenna may not help your issue. Be carefull of any antenna using a PL259 connector and RG-58 coax. Those type are made to sell rather than to use. Good Luck.

 

[rg57005]

SF fire gets dispatched out on SF FIRE CHAN.6 then SF fire uses SF CHAN1 to talk to metro
you need to put SF chan 6 talk group into your scanner.
also what kind of scanner do you have? I have the pro2096 and I don't scan SF chan 6 but I do scan SF ambulance. if metro patches the 2 chans together the pro 2096 will just keep scanning unless metro picks SF ambulance talk group first. my BCD996T Will do the patch So it will always picks up when metro patches them together. Hope that helps you.

 

[SCPD]

okay hopefully I can clear the air a little bit-
When a fire call or fire/ems call comes out they tone it out on Sioux falls fire 6 TG 23552, which they patch to Sioux Falls Metro EMS TG 23696.(They only patch these two TG's together when paging a call) Sioux Falls Fire will then answer the call on Sioux Falls Fire 1 TG 23472, They also will use SFFR 1 for all their dispatch operations then associated with the call. Like wise, Rural Metro will use Sioux Falls MET EMS to answer the call and for all the dispatching associated with the call. The channel labeled Sioux Falls RM 2, this channel like you said they will use to call code 5 (when they need to call in on call staff) or in special events and the like.

As far as paging- Sioux Falls Fire personnel carry alpha numeric pagers that are paged on 155.880. You may hear voice pagers on this freq too, but not much.

Minnehaha County fire personnel can carry Alpha numeric pagers OR Motorola Minitor voice pagers. County fire used to all carry Minitors, but then Metro dispatch wanted to switch to all alpha numeric pagers for cost saving measures. They tried this...and some County Fire personnel could get the page from their homes, and some could not, (different towers for paging different systems). So now County Fire carries Alpha numeric pagers or Minitors. Minitors are dispatched on 154.415 and is patched to Minnehaha County Fire 1 TG 23440. County Fire also is sent text pages from Metro via cell.

As far as CAD's, Sioux Falls PD, SO, FD and Rural Metro all use CAD- PD and SO rely heavily on it (but they still run name checks/vehicle check etc over the radio). As far as County Fire, all EMS units carry CAD, and some fire units, but not many. All CAD units use verizon broadband for data.