TV Show Emergency Station 51 Tones

[N9MRJ]

Before another local agency took over our fire department, I had two tone set up for our station alerting.

During the day time, the radio was set so that all traffic was heard through the speakers, including the two tone alert.
At night, they'd switch to a second channel that had everything but their tones muted.

So, yes, depending on how they were set up, the could have heard the tones during the day.

But, it's TV and anything goes on TV, even if it doesn't make sense.

But remember, it was a Jack Webb production and he was a stickler for realism.

 

[MUTNAV]

I always thought that the tones were helpful (to me, the viewer) after 20 tones or so went off, you knew something big was happening.


Thanks
Joel

 

[Eng74]

Our old UHF system was a 2+2 tone you only really hear 2 tones. After a few years of you learned the tones. Our first tone was very unique and there was only one other station that had a similar first tone. The other firefighter and I had it down so good we would upset the captain because we were going as soon as we heard the start of the first tone. Once we went to the VHF system and everyone got new tones finished that. Everyone in the battalion has the same first tone now and then the second tone is the same for for say 12, 22, 32, 42, etc.

 

[xilix]

Back when I was working at KFI we didn't really care (our EAS receiver was carrier squelch), but do you know if they PL that transmitter? I might have to remote into my SDS200 and find out.

EC

Unknown if they use a PL. Our EAS receiver doesn't have the smarts to decode it anyhow.

 

[kny2xb]

And how many times did they talk on their HT with the antenna fully collapsed, or Capt. Stanley talk into the back of the station's mic?

I'll have to watch more episodes, I missed those

Now, I remember them pulling out the antenna on the h-t to answer a call from the dispatcher when they were at Rampart, & it seemed really short

 

[ind224]

KMG 365 those were the days....

 

[cavmedic]

In the early 2000’s I used to work at a County dispatch. When I was working the fire/ems board, we would get Tropo from Queens NY around 2100 on some of the county VHF hi stuff if the PL was dropped. So naturally I would drop the PL , simulselect a few low band towers and one high band fire ground tower and cross patch it for the whackers in scanner land .

10/4 K

I remember back in the 80s & 90s when a lot of the public safety agencies were still using vhf low. it was amazing what all you got during the tropo times. 33.940 did come out here to Michigan now and again and I think I may have heard some LA traffic on there.

 

[wa8pyr]

In the early 2000’s I used to work at a County dispatch. When I was working the fire/ems board, we would get Tropo from Queens NY around 2100 on some of the county VHF hi stuff if the PL was dropped. So naturally I would drop the PL , simulselect a few low band towers and one high band fire ground tower and cross patch it for the whackers in scanner land.

The FD I used to dispatch at was on 33.92 MHz. When conditions were right, around 11am local we would get a county in California somewhere doing their weekly station roll call ("Station 1..... Station 1 ok.... Station 2...." etc). When they finished we would jump in with "Station 161 ok" and they would respond with "Thanks Ohio!".

Another department I dispatched at was on 33.82, and we would frequently hear the LA City FD in the San Fernando Valley being dispatched.

Fun times. I miss low band.

 

[wa8pyr]

My brother and I had the board game, lunch boxes, I think we even dressed up as Roy and John for halloween one year. I'll still stop and watch it if it comes on.

I've got the entire series (including the "Season 7" TV movies) in my home DVD collection. That show was what got me into public safety in the first place....

 

[maus92]

When I was a live-in in a firehouse during college, the tones went out over the dispatch / ops channel prior to voice dispatch. It was "almost" a game to guess when tone 2 was for your company and start dashing to the engine bay. At night in the bunk room, the dispatch channel would play at low volume, but if the station was toned out, audio would go to full volume, the lights would snap on at full brightness and the bells would peel. Today, the lights and audio alerts gradually ramp up.

 

[mmckenna]

Today, the lights and audio alerts gradually ramp up.

Prevents heart attacks that way.
While not in the fire service, getting woken out of a deep sleep by the GQ alarm going off onboard a ship probably took a few years off my life.

Worse is when you wake up and hear nothing. When the engines go silent, you instantly wake up and know that some stuff is about to go very wrong.

 

[kny2xb]

Fun times. I miss low band.

When I lived in Rochester, NY, between 1990-1992, there was some good to great low band DX

I used to copy the CHP on 42 MHz with my PRO-2004
I had the balance of my 300 channels, so I entered all that I could find for SoCal

73

 

[tkenny53]

Going from Emergency to tv shows like 911 and Chicago Fire, it sure has changed.
Emergency was so much real time, real water on fires.
Now the others just administer meds on the fly and put out fires without water....

 

[Insulator]

Here is another tid-bit about their dispatch. The voice belonged to Sam Lanier. He was a real dispatcher for them, starting in 1958. He died back in '97. More information can be found on their
website "Emergencyfans.com".

 

[EricRF]

KMG 365 those were the days....

Damn, I just found this thread and was scrolling through hoping no one had said that already! You beat me to it!
Though I just remembered... KMG365 was my password on the computer system in high school...

 

[Falcon9h]

In the 70's I lived in NJ and remember Parsippany PD was on 39.14. Even had an Aerotron portable set up for rx only and skip came in from Ca. loud and clear for a time. Knew it was Ca. by the voice.
Another summer I sat home and listened to Arkansas State Police on my BC210xl like they were next door, whip only, no outdoor antenna.
Love hearing/sharing these stories.

 

[tkenny53]

LA City Fire would cross the country at 33.70mhz

 

[WX4JCW]

I've got the entire series (including the "Season 7" TV movies) in my home DVD collection. That show was what got me into public safety in the first place....

Me Too, I was lucky enough that I worked with Single digit paramedic numbers in Orange County/Orlando - I really miss those days
I was also lucky enough to Visit 127 and talked to Robert Fuller

if interested there is a book out on Amazon called "In Service" by Leo Murphy, awesome guy and an OOOOOLLLD School Medic, he said he mentioned me in there at one point

 

[JethrowJohnson]

I've got the entire series (including the "Season 7" TV movies) in my home DVD collection. That show was what got me into public safety in the first place....

I don't think there's a single episode of that show that I haven't seen.

 

[W5ATX]

Here is some more sounds, you'll be here for an hour driving your other half, pets and neighbors nuts

Police Interceptor.Com