I am listening to a call with another department on our county frequency.

I have been also listening to some kid playing with their parent's or grandparent's portable fire radio.

Most in our all volunteer area have portables or mobile radios in our POV to notify dispatch of our response, advise who is closest to the hall to get the trucks, etc. (The portables become your fireground radio once at scene).

At one point dispatch said "This is (dispatch centre callsign)... unit calling, say again"

The kid was heard again after that only two more times but that was all.

(Fortunately they did not interfere with the call going on at the time)

Our radios do not have any kind of  'data burst' or sub-audible callsign ID system.

I am thinking this problem has cropped up for others in the past... how have you delt with it?

I forsee a memo going out to all the area Chiefs from dispatch for starters.

There are so many things that come to mind, the obvious:

- who is watching this young kid?

- why have you left your radio unsecured?

- and a million 'what if' questions.