[BC] Emergency Traffic /really drifitng on a Friday...

[Ray Vaughan]

Well, I work in Miami Dade Fire Rescue, Communications Division, so I 
guess I should say something.

Yes, a small subset of the Q codes are alive and well in Miami 
Dade.  Only a few, QSL, QTH, QSM, QSY, QRU, QRR.   Also a lot of 
number codes that I think are unique to us, 02, call by phone, 05 
back at the station, 317 accident with injuries,  42 
Ambulance....  Florida Highway Patrol is heavy into 10 codes.   I 
swear they can tell jokes in nothing but 10 codes.

There is a strong push to go to plain English as part of our federal 
funding.

http://www.fema.gov/pdf/nims/More10Codes02-08-06.pdf#search=%22NIMS%20Plain%20English%22

So, the idea is if we use plain English day-to-day at home, we'll be 
more likely to use it when we work with other agencies in an 
emergency.  When I have my FEMA US&R hat on, I'm supposed to use only 
Plain English.   It IS hard to remember.   Now that we have CAD 
computers in the trucks, I suspect we'll start hearing less of 
everything on the air.   We now clear calls and advise of arrival on 
the computer with a repeat on the air.   As people get more 
comfortable with the computers I think the radio will get 
quiet.  (wow, did I just say that in a broadcast mailing list?)

What won't change is the codes for medical conditions.   29 Delta 4 
is an accident with entrapment.   From the 911 call to the EMS 
report, this code stays with the call.   This is a national standard 
that I think most departments use 
today.  http://ecmscanning.tripod.com/pridispcodes.html

If you want to know what's going on here now, here is our Computer 
Aided Dispatch 
screen:  http://www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/firecad/wwwcipnew.asp  and 
you can listen here:  http://65.222.96.133/ListenIn.asp   An idea 
stolen from my Broadcasting work, I set up listen lines for our 
channels.   Nice thing about working on both the radios and the phone 
system... I get to tie them together.   On a good night I'll see 20+ 
people on the lines from all over the country.   I won't give out the 
numbers in a public forum. If your station has an Avaya phone system, 
I can show you some ideas.

Thanks for mentioning us.  Nice way to get me to think about ways 
broadcasting and public safety cross over.

Ray Vaughan, KD4BBM, MS, CBTE, COM-S, CERT (ok, I'll stop now)

At 01:01 AM 9/9/2006, you wrote:
>Date: Fri, 08 Sep 2006 22:27:40 -0400
>From: Alan Alsobrook <radiotech at bellsouth.net>
>Subject: Re: [BC] Emergency Traffic /really drifitng on a Friday...
>To: "Broadcasters' Mailing List" <broadcast at radiolists.net>
>Message-ID: <4502269C.4040807 at bellsouth.net>
>Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; format=flowed
>
>Miami-Dade County did, and still uses Q codes over 10 codes. Add to that
>Florida Power & Light uses Q codes for its radio traffic state wide as
>well.
>I haven't done much scanner listening in that part of the state, but I
>was told last week that 10 codes are now infiltrating in some agencies,
>but Q codes were primary for most agencies in the Miami area for many
>years.
>
>Tom Bosscher wrote:
> > p.s., in the movie "Miami Vice", the Miami sergeant asks the boys,
> > twice, what their QTH is!  Not "What's your 20", but "What's your QTH?"!
>--
>Alan Alsobrook CSRE AMD CBNT
>St. Augustine Fl. 32086 904-829-8885
>aalso at Bellsouth.net