Portable Radios- One For Each Crew Member or Do You Have to Share Them?

Several months ago, my F.D. updated our portable radios so that each seating position had it's own portable radio. We were able to do this due to a grant. This ensures that each crew member on that rig has his/her own radio. This has greatly improved safety and communication. I was just wondering what other F.D's, (from big city to small town) are doing.

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Permalink Reply by Todd on February 20, 2009 at 1:35am

At my station all volunteer officers and engineers are issued radios.
The four career folks on shift each have a radio.
We also carry at least one VHF (we use VHF on scene, 800mhz enroute and to talk to dispatch) on each apparatus.

Every crew that goes in has at least one radio, as does the RIT team.

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Permalink Reply by Robert L. Oswalt on February 20, 2009 at 1:45am

In are lil Vol. Dept. only are offcers have radio's & only 4 of are FPO's have them al so.

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Permalink Reply by michael painter on February 20, 2009 at 2:19am

I live in a small town and we all have our own radios but we have a shortage on pagers. Maybe 15 of our 30 members have pagers most of the rescue squad crew got the pagers.

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Permalink Reply by Franco Vella on February 20, 2009 at 3:26am

we are a volunteer group, but we have radios for all key personell. we also carry a radio with each team that goes out, also utilising 5 channels, 2 simplex, 2 fixed repeaters and 1 portable.

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Permalink Reply by ffemt19 on February 20, 2009 at 5:32am

All firefighters responding to an incident should have a portable radio, so all seating positions should have radio.
We have for all our interior firefighters (every SCBA has a radio) an analog radio and all officiers have a analog radio and a digital radio.
Best for safety, communication is very important an incident scenes.

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Permalink Reply by 1901 on February 20, 2009 at 6:26am

We are a very small department and we share portables. All the officers have one and there are atleast one in every truck with 4 in the main engine.

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Permalink Reply by Harry on February 20, 2009 at 6:34am

We also did this threw a grant. It was actually cheaper than buying new miniture 3 pagers.

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Permalink Reply by Dennis Guay on February 20, 2009 at 6:55am

In our town the only ones to carry a radio our the officers and hydrant man.

DG

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Permalink Reply by Joe Herdman on February 20, 2009 at 7:00am

We are a small rural department with about 25 members of which 2/3 or better have been issued a radio...

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Permalink Reply by Richard Elliott on February 20, 2009 at 7:13am

We have been try to accomplish this also. It does seem to help. We are still a few radio short. With our frequency changing this is going to hurt us again by having to change out over half of our radios.

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Permalink Reply by Aaron Grosjean on February 20, 2009 at 7:46am

In my volunteer department, officers are issued pagers and portables. We also have two portable radios in each of our engines. This systems has worked well in the past, but we have run into a few situations in the swamps were communication has been an issue.

Aaron Grosjean--FF/NREMT-B
Hertford, NC

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Permalink Reply by ZAKMAN on February 20, 2009 at 8:23am

I LIVE IN A SMALL VOL. TOWN . MY SENERIO IS THAT WE HAVE 3 FIREHOUSES AND I LIVE ABOUT A MILE FROM ONE OF THEM, THIS ONE IS A SUBSTATION. WHEN WE GET A CALL FOR A MVA OR OF A FIRE IN MY LOCATION , I DRIVE TO THE HOUSE TO PICK UP A PORTABLE RADIO FROM ONE OF THE TRUCK ( NOT A DRIVE YET ON THE TRUCKS) AND GO TO THE SCENE TO RELAY THE SITUATION BEFORE THE TRUCKS GET TO THE SCENE.WE'LL ONE OF THE OFFICERS HAS A POWER TRIP, AND TELLS ME I SHOULD NOT HAVE A RADIO CAUSE YOU'R NOT AN OFFICER. WHAT DO YOU GUYS THINK.