CFA Comms Ch Usage
Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2016 1:53 pm
I'm baaaaack
With the recent Carrum Downs and Ultima fires, the scanner got a work out, with lots of traffic on 'new' (to me) channels.
[If that makes sense]
I'm hoping some of you knowledgeable blokes can help me.
So, on a big fire (like the aforementioned two), you would have an ICC (Incident Control Center),
it would be overseeing everything - ops, comms, weather, alerts etc.
Now, for most normal/small sized fires (with multiple appliances), trucks get dispatched via VF channels,
then when they are on scene, they switch over to a fireground channel (which permits local simplex comms, without clogging up the main dispatch channel).
If there's an FCV on scene, they have 2 mobile radios - one for dispatch, one for fireground, so they can monitor both and act like a 'go between'.
However, with very large incidents, you have GoTo Fireground channels, IMC (Incident Management Channels) and IC (Incident Control) channels active (from what I can tell).
I get all of this so far (kinda )
What i'm asking is how are the comms disseminated down the chain???
From the ICC, are IC channels used to communicate to, what? (FOV??? Comms Van?), which then use IMCs to communicate with FCVs???, which then communicate with individual appliances over fireground channels???
It's all very confusing?
So, how are the comms pools arranged, how are messages transmitted (and through what channels) down the line, from the top (ICC) all the way down to individual trucks???
What is involved? FOV? Local comms vans? FCVs? District HQ's? ICCs? IMCs? ICs?
Where are the ICC's by the way?
And why am I getting what appears to be AV traffic on IC 160, and SES traffic on IMC 184?
Anyway, I am so, so sorry for whoever tries to wrap their brain round the ramblings of this nut
Cheers blokes,
have a happy and safe new year.
With the recent Carrum Downs and Ultima fires, the scanner got a work out, with lots of traffic on 'new' (to me) channels.
[If that makes sense]
I'm hoping some of you knowledgeable blokes can help me.
So, on a big fire (like the aforementioned two), you would have an ICC (Incident Control Center),
it would be overseeing everything - ops, comms, weather, alerts etc.
Now, for most normal/small sized fires (with multiple appliances), trucks get dispatched via VF channels,
then when they are on scene, they switch over to a fireground channel (which permits local simplex comms, without clogging up the main dispatch channel).
If there's an FCV on scene, they have 2 mobile radios - one for dispatch, one for fireground, so they can monitor both and act like a 'go between'.
However, with very large incidents, you have GoTo Fireground channels, IMC (Incident Management Channels) and IC (Incident Control) channels active (from what I can tell).
I get all of this so far (kinda )
What i'm asking is how are the comms disseminated down the chain???
From the ICC, are IC channels used to communicate to, what? (FOV??? Comms Van?), which then use IMCs to communicate with FCVs???, which then communicate with individual appliances over fireground channels???
It's all very confusing?
So, how are the comms pools arranged, how are messages transmitted (and through what channels) down the line, from the top (ICC) all the way down to individual trucks???
What is involved? FOV? Local comms vans? FCVs? District HQ's? ICCs? IMCs? ICs?
Where are the ICC's by the way?
And why am I getting what appears to be AV traffic on IC 160, and SES traffic on IMC 184?
Anyway, I am so, so sorry for whoever tries to wrap their brain round the ramblings of this nut
Cheers blokes,
have a happy and safe new year.