Mutual Aid Box Alarm System

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• Mutual Aid Box Alarm System

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MABAS Communications Committee

• Charged with the task of improving fire service
  communications interoperability to assist with
  incident management of

Emergencies
Natural Disasters
Man Made Catastrophes
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Communications Interoperability

• Provide ability for the Incident Commander to
  communicate with all divisions or sectors at an
  incident.

• Provide ability for companies to communicate
  within sectors.

• Provide for interdisciplinary communications.

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Communications Interoperability

• Provide communications procedures for Mayday
  and Emergency Traffic Situations
• Provide ability for mutual aid companies and
  change of quarters companies to communicate with
  MABAS Divisions and the local fire dispatch
  center.

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MABAS Communications

• Interagency Fire Emergency Radio Network
• Frequency of 154.265 MHz
• Two-tone encoding to alert pagers and alert
  receivers
• Referred to as the IFERN frequency

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Why VHF Simplex?

• Most Commonly Used Frequency Band for Public
  Safety in Illinois
• MABAS Three Decade History of Dispatch
  Operations on VHF High Band
• NFPA Standard 1221 on Emergency Service
  Communications Systems
• A separate simplex radio channel shall be
  provided for on-scene tactical operations.

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Communications Advocacy Statements

• Statement 1 VHF Interoperability
• 2 Dispatch (Base/Mobile) Frequencies
• IFERN (wideband)
• IFERN2 (narrowband)
• 3 Wideband Fireground (Tactical) Frequencies
• Red, White Blue
• 3 Narrowband Fireground (Tactical) Freqs
• Gold, Black Gray
• IREACH (Inter-disciplinary Coordination)

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Communications Advocacy Statements

• Statement 1 VHF Interoperability
• Mutual Aid Response Apparatus should have VHF
  radio capabilities on IFERN Fireground Channels
• Discourages the use of cross-band repeaters or
  trunking applications for fireground (tactical)
  situations.

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Communications Advocacy Statements

• Statement 2 Radio Licenses
• Encourages all fire departments to audit their
  FCC radio authorizations.
• Encourages appropriate use of frequencies.
• Encourages departments and/or MABAS Divisions to
  obtain accurate FCC radio authorizations on both
  dispatch and tactical frequencies.

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Communications Advocacy Statements

• Statement 3 Transmit Power Limitations
• Limits transmit power on fireground (tactical)
  frequencies to 10 watts maximum.
• Allows high power (110 watt) operations on IFERN
  and IFERN 2 Frequencies
• Discourages fixed base station transmit
  operations on fireground (tactical) frequencies.

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Communications Advocacy Statements

• Statement 4 MABAS Alerting
• Establishes specific paging tones and encoder
  timing formats to ensure proper alerting.
• Encourages testing to determine proper coverage
  for dispatch area. (95 coverage)
• Encourages reengineering of Division base
  stations if coverage is inadequate.

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Communications Advocacy Statements

• Statement 5 Medical Helicopters
• Discourages use of IFERN or Red, White or Blue
  fireground frequencies for medical helicopter
  landing zones.
• Encourages the use of existing VHF MERCI
  frequencies, IREACH or other local frequency(ies)

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Communications Advocacy Statements

• Statement 6 CTCSS Tones PL
• Establishes CTCSS tones for all MABAS
  operations frequencies.
• Establishes implementation date for IFERN base
  station operations of January 1, 2006.

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Communications Advocacy Statements

• Statement 7 Statewide Radio License
• Proposed for Executive Board Action on February
  5th.
• MABAS has applied to FCC for statewide authority
  on 8 MABAS frequencies.
• 25,000 Mobiles
• 20 Fixed Base Temporary Stations for IFERN and
  IFERN2

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Communications Advocacy Statements

• Statement 7 Statewide Radio License
• Establishes parameters for shared use of MABAS
  frequencies and MABAS FCC authorization by member
  departments.
• Frequencies can be used for emergency scene
  communications and official training activities.
• Requires shared users to abide by MABAS policies,
  FCC rules and Advocacy Statements.
• Shifts liability for improper operation to user.

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MUTUAL AID BOX ALARM

• Each Division designates a MABAS Dispatching
  Center and a Backup Center with MABAS tone
  encoders
• All MABAS Alarms are toned out on and transmitted
  on the IFERN frequency.
• IFERN becomes dispatch channel for the incident.
• Responding apparatus uses IFERN.

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MUTUAL AID BOX ALARM

• Local fire department dispatcher copies Box Alarm
  dispatch and confirms unit(s) due from their
  jurisdiction(s).
• Local dispatcher dispatches unit(s) due using
  normal dispatch procedures/protocols.
• If requested unit(s) are unavailable, local
  dispatcher advises MABAS Division dispatch as
  soon as possible.
• MABAS Division dispatcher has authority to make
  substitutions.

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MUTUAL AID BOX ALARM

• Responding units advise local dispatcher of
  response on local fire frequency.
• Responding units then advise MABAS of their
  response via IFERN radio frequency.
• Self or Pre-Dispatching Wait for MABAS to
  dispatch alarm before going enroute on IFERN.
• Responding units respond to designated Level II
  staging area and report to staging officer.

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MUTUAL AID BOX ALARM

• www.MABAS.org
• www.MABASRADIO.org
• MABAS Communications Survey