Task Forces For Canton MA Train Crash?

[zerg901]

Did anyone hear the mobilization of the 2 ambulance task forces for the Canton train crash? Were they mobilized via 154.295 or via telephone? Was 151.145R used at all? Peter Sz

 

[mrsvensven]

I heard lots of them going out on 154.295. I assume at least a couple places had to be notified by telephone if they weren't paying attention. I have never heard 151.145 used, except during drills. The only ambulances out here that even have VHF radios are the ones that were given a vhf radio by the task force organizers.

 

[zerg901]

Ben - thanks for your reply. One quick followup question please. Did Norfolk County Control send the task force ambulances to a rendevous area, or did they send them direct to the scene? Peter Sz

IIRC - each ambulance task force in Massachusetts has 5 BLS ambulances and 1 supervisor. Maybe 1 paramedic truck also.

 

[mrsvensven]

I'm not sure, I don't live in the area and I am not involved with EMS at all. I remember that they went to a staging area and were called to the scene one or two at a time, but I don't know if they went to a rendevous point first. I don't know how close to the scene the staging point was either.

There was a statewide drill within the last year, and the ambulances from my area went to a rendevous point then to the "scene".

 

[zerg901]

Thanks for the info Ben. It sounds like the statewide procedure is to mobilize the ambulance task forces via the fire district channels, have them go to a rendevouz point, and then respond to the incident as a group. I think this is the same procedure that California fire strike teams use. Peter Sz

 

[mrsvensven]

Thanks for the info Ben. It sounds like the statewide procedure is to mobilize the ambulance task forces via the fire district channels, have them go to a rendevouz point, and then respond to the incident as a group. I think this is the same procedure that California fire strike teams use. Peter Sz

It's possible that the fire district had their own plan in place before the statewide plan was created. They would likely have used the county plan before pulling out the statewide fire mobilization plan (or whatever plan it is that ambulances fall under). My town activated an ambulance task force a couple months ago, and everything was done on the existing county EMS channel, not the 151 frequency. Supposedly a CMED channel is to be assigned also, but no ambulances I know of have cmed radios except in the back of the ambulances (except maybe Worcester and the other couple UHF towns). The statewide plan could have been created to be exactly the same as the existing county plan too, I don't know.

Like I said, I am not in public safety and I know very little outside of my own town. I could be very wrong.

 

[SheriffDspatchr]

Strike Team

Yes you are correct, In most cases a Department would exhaust the resources on it's run card using local Mutual-Aid then move onto the Statewide Fire Mobilization Plan - in both instances this would be coordinated by the local District Control Point or Mutual-Aid center. Typically in Strike Team and Task Force situations, they are initially dispatched to an "Assembly Point" and then travel to a "Stagging Area" - and when coordinated properly, these events can go very smoothly. The Fire Chiefs Committee and Fire Academy will be giving more focus to this and providing training this summer & fall.

In Plymouth County / District 2 - there are Ambulance Strike Teams on the Departments local plan.

SSB