Purpose - Standard procedures should be used by all concerned for handling messages by radio or telephone. Use of standard procedures will conserve on-the-air time and will permit accurate, brief and rapid transmission of essential information. Careless procedure and lack of system discipline cause delay, confusion and unnecessary transmissions.
System Discipline - The communications center dispatcher is responsible for maintaining system discipline, for handling radio and telephone message traffic accurately and as rapidly as possible, for determining the order of priority in which transmissions will be made and for directing and controlling the use of all frequencies. It shall also be the responsibility of the dispatcher to bring violations of the operating procedures contained herein to the attention of Communications Department management who shall make written notification of such violations to the chief of the department involved. If violations continue to occur after three written notifications the chief will be requested to meet with advisory board representatives to explain the reasons for the repeated violations. When faced with a situation where a system user may become angry, abusive, or derogatory towards a dispatcher or visa versa, DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES RETALIATE over the radio. Handle the situation in a professional manner and forward complaints to Communications Department management.
Use of frequencies will be limited to communications essential to the conduct of official fire and rescue activities. UNDER RULES OF THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION IT IS UNLAWFUL:
- To transmit superfluous signals or messages of a personal nature by radio
- To use profane, indecent or obscene language
- To willfully damage or permit radio apparatus to be damaged
- To cause unlawful or malicious interference with any other radio communications
- To intercept and use or publish the contents of any radio message without the express permission of the proper authority (Director, Bucks County Department of Communications)
- To make unnecessary or unidentified transmissions
- To transmit without first making sure that the intended transmission will not cause harmful interference
- To make certain adjustments, repairs or alterations whatsoever to a radio transmitter. It is required bylaw that only a professional radio technician, holding a second-class license or higher, may make certain adjustments and repairs.
- To deny access to any radio equipment if a properly identified representative of the Federal Communications Commission asks to inspect it. The equipment must be made available for inspection at any reasonable hour.
- To transmit a call signal, letter or numeral which has not been assigned.
Upon conviction for any of the above offenses, the Federal Communications Act of 1934 as amended, provides a penalty of not more than $10,000 fine, or not more than one year imprisonment or both for the first offense.
Bucks County Communications will at all times retain responsibility for control of frequency usage, and will restrict use of frequencies to the conduct of fire/rescue emergency operations and/or similarly related activities.
All operations will be conducted on the assigned zone frequency unless otherwise directed by the county dispatcher.
When there is a high volume of message traffic and conditions become congested, the county dispatcher may order appropriate units organizational groupings to use an alternate frequency.
Maximum use will be made of the zone frequency in order to avoid interference with primary dispatch operations conducted on 46.10 MHz. In any situation considered necessary to reduce congestion or to eliminate interference with primary dispatch operations, Bucks County may instruct appropriate units to change to an alternate frequency. Similarly, when use of the zone frequency is impractical, the officer-in-charge on the scene may request an alternate frequency assignment. All requests from the field for use of an alternate frequency will be transmitted on the zone frequency and no frequency change will be made until acknowledged and practical. When authorized for command and control of fireground or multiple alarm operations, the incident commander at the scene shall be responsible for maintaining proper control of the frequency's use in the local area of operation. Bucks County will monitor all frequencies continuously and shall retain ultimate control of its use. Personnel operating portables are encouraged to use the fireground band whenever possible.
Under many conditions radio and telephone traffic in the communications center becomes heavy enough to prevent immediate answers to radio calls. When this occurs, the county dispatcher may take the following action:
- Bucks County may advise, "ALL COMPANIES STAND BY." This means: The dispatcher is temporarily unable to answer; do not transmit until further notice.
In situations when radio frequencies become congested due to multiple emergency operations in progress simultaneously, Bucks County may order, "BUCKS COUNTY TO ALL UNITS AND STATIONS, LIMIT YOUR TRANSMISSIONS TO EMERGENCIES ONLY." After this order is transmitted, all units will use radio only for transmission of priority emergency messages, and reports of units changing status will be deferred or handled by telephone. When message traffic conditions return to normal, the county will broadcast a message lifting radio silence.
In an emergency or when any unit has priority emergency message for the county and when radio traffic is heavy or when radio silence is in effect, the unit will call Bucks County in the following manner: "ENGINE 10 TO BUCKS COUNTY--PRIORITY!"
A priority emergency message will be given priority over all other messages; however, use of the priority category will be restricted to the type of emergency where life or personal injury is at stake or for critical situations requiring immediate additional assistance.
All fire and rescue personnel should continuously be aware of the need to conserve the use of radio frequencies and should make a conscious and positive effort to eliminate unnecessary use of radio by using voice commands and post messages whenever possible.
