PoliceScannerBlog.com:

20 Basic Antenna Installation Safety Rules (Pt.2 of 2)

2011-12-21T12:31:00.000-08:00

...continued from "20 Basic Antenna Installation Safety Rules - Part 1"

Once again, some of the rules may seen obvious, however for safety's sake, they bear repeating.

#8 – BEFORE YOU BEGIN: Call your Power Company before youbegin the project. Let them come and review your site. This might seem like aninconvenience, but time spent with the Power Company may help avoid a fatalaccident. Play it safe. Never dig without contacting the utility companies.

#9 – GENERAL AWARENESS: Be aware of the dangers and takeadequate steps to avoid the potential hazards involved with the installation/dismantling.

#10 – ANTENNA GROUNDING: Outdoor antennas should be groundedwith an approved lighting arresting device. Do not use hot water pipes or gaslines as a ground source. This is totally against all rules and is very unsafe.. The radio should also be grounded to good earth ground to help protect theradio.

#11 – ANTENNA GUY WIRES: Guy wires are support wires thathold the mast up. They are usually necessary when the mast exceeds12 feet in length. Never use a utility pole as a support for an antenna orguy wire and never climb a utility pole while doing an installation or removal.Only authorized utility company staff can do so and you can be arrested fortrespassing.

#12 – POSSIBLE RESTRICTIONS: FCC or local rules on how high you can mount your antennamay apply to your installation depending on your proximity to an airport. Findout what they maybe before you start your project and comply with them fully. Failureto do so may not only be unsafe but may mean dismantling the antenna system tomeet local rules and regulations. There may be local codes that apply toinstallations so check this out also

#13 – HELPING HAND: You will most likely require a second oreven third pair of hands for the installation. Each person should have assignedtasks and know what to do when and in what order. A "boss" should be chosen to call out instructionsand watch for any signs of trouble.

#14 – PROPER TOOLS: Be sure to have all tool that you will need for the install or dismantling. This includes screws, screwdrivers, wrenches, etc. Dress properly with proper protectivegear and use an approved safety belt if you are climbing a mast or tower.

#15 – ANTENNA TOWERS: If your antennainstallation includes putting up a tower read the additional advisory on towersthat comes with your unit. Guyed towers are NOT self-supporting at any height.

#16 – WIRE ANTENNAS: If you are installing a wire antenna,be sure to install high enough so that it will not be walked into by peoplegoing walking by. DO NOT install wire antennas over or under utility lines. Watchout where your lead in or coax lines are running.

#17 – BE SMART: DO NOT work on wet, snowy or windy days orif a thunderstorm is approaching.

#18 – METAL LADDERS: DO NOT use a metal ladder aroundelectric wires/power lines, cable, and phone lines.

#19 – FALLING ANTENNAS: If the assembly you are putting upstarts to drop get away from it and let it fall. You can be badly hurt byfalling antennas or any of their parts.

#20 – CONTACT WITH UTILITY LINES: If any part of the antennashould come in contact with a power line DON'T TOUCH IT OR TRY TO REMOVE ITYOURSELF. You must call your local powercompany immediately and have them deal with the problem.

That pretty much sums it all up. If you missed "20 Basic Antenna Installation Safety Rules - Pt.1", you can read it here.

If you would like to share your experience installing an antenna or have any thing you would like to the rules above, use the comment section below.

That's it for now. Till next time, stay safe and happy scanning.

Have a Very Merry Christmas Holiday!

-RF

Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

P.S. - Don't forget to check us out on our Facebook Page! We provide fans with exclusive content including; police and fire photos, videos, links, selected breaking news stories, and other cool stuff! Become a fan and Get a FREE COPY of our eBook "Inside the World of Police Scanners".

20 Basic Antenna Installation Safety Rules (Pt.1 of 2)

2011-12-16T12:50:00.000-08:00

Are you planning on buying an outdoor antenna or have you justpurchased one to extend your scanner’s reception capabilities from an averageof 15-20 miles to 50-70 miles or more? If so, great job!

Now it's time to put that baby up. No need to be afraid of an antenna installation if youfollow some basic rules.

At my previous home, I installed a discone antennalike the one pictured above and everything went pretty smooth.

Before you being installing your new antenna, there are someimportant things you should know and precautions you should take to avoidserious injury or death while installing your antenna.

That said, I have put together a list of 20 Basic Antenna SafetyRules to follow when installing an antenna. Some of the rules may seem obvious,however, for safety’s sake, they bear repeating.

Here are the 20 Basic Antenna Safety Rules to know and/orfollow:

#1 – FIRST TIME INSTALLERS: If this is your first timeinstalling your new or dismantling your old antenna, or if you are unsure ofyour abilities to do the installation/dismantling, you may want to find somehelp from a qualified antenna installation company or hire one to do theinstallation.

#2 – READ DOCUMENTATION: If you decide to proceed with yourown installation/dismantling be sure to read the manufacturer's instructions/directions.Pay close attention to any warnings/advisories in full before proceeding withyour installation. There may be important safety advice contained in these directions/instructions.

#3 –PLANNING THE INSTALLATION: Take the time to plan yourinstallation procedure. Make sure you have all the parts and tools you willneed before beginning. Choose an installation site for safety as well asperformance. Optimally, you want to be away from power, cable and telephonelines. Do not place an antenna where it could potentially fall on, or blow downon during a storm into a power line.

#4 – OVERHEAD/UNDERGROUND UTILITY LINES: The installation/dismantlingof any antenna near overhead power, telephone, or cable lines is very dangerousand can cause SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH if you or the antenna comes in contactwith those lines. Also, watch where your lead in or coax lines are running.

#5 – NEVER ASSUME: All electric power, cable, and telephonelines may look alike. Each year people are killed or seriously injured whileattempting to install/dismantle an antenna. To be safe, you should treat ANY OVERHEADline as if it could seriously injure or kill you because it can.

#6 – IF DIGGING IS REQUIRED: Utility lines are is alsoburied underground. These include all of the utilities: Electric, Gas, Water,Cable, and Sewer. If you have to dig to bury the antenna cable or whateverelse, be sure you know where these lines are to avoid potentially hitting one. Younever know what may be under your feet and you don’t want to find out whiledigging a hole in the ground.

#7 – FAILSAFE DISTANCE: The failsafe distance is the minimum safe distance to avoid the antenna potentiallyfalling on nearby utility lines should the antenna get blown over during asevere wind or rain storm. To determine the FAILSAFE DISTANCE follow thesesteps:

A. – Determine the total height of your antenna.

B. – Add the antenna length of any mast or pole to thelength of your tower mast.

C. – Double that figure (or close to double) just to beextra safe should it fall over.

Your answer to the above three calculations will be theminimum failsafe distance from the nearest utility line that you should installyour antenna.

#8 thru #20 - Continued in Part-2 coming next week...

That’s it for now. Till next time, stay safe and happyscanning!

-RF

Scannermaster Offers FREE SHIPPING for Christmas!

2011-12-03T21:33:00.001-08:00

Hello everyone! It's that time of year again, the Christmas Holiday is fast approaching!

That said, I wanted to take this time to let you all know that Scanner Master is also offering FREE USPS/UPS GROUND SHIPPING for the ENTIRE MONTH OF DECEMBER! YEAH! (use coupon code "freeship30", see site for details)

Scanner Master's has AWESOME PRICES on the latest digital police scanners including the pre-programmed HomePatrol Scanner and on hundreds of scanner accessories!

The following are Order Deadlines to ensure delivery of your police scanners and accessories in time for the Holiday! Below is the last day you can order in-stock items via FREE USPS/UPS GROUND SERVICE:

West Coast - Order by Thursday 12/15/2011
Central USA - Order by Friday 12/16/2011
Southeast Coast - Order by Monday 12/19/2011
Northeast Coast (excluding New England) - Tuesday Order by 12/20/2011
New England - Order by Wednesday 12/22/2011

Of course if you miss any of the deadlines above, Scanner Master also offers the following shipping options:

UPS 3 Day Select - last day Tuesday 12/20 to ensure delivery by Friday 12/23.
UPS 2nd Day Air - last day Wednesday 12/21 to ensure delivery by Friday 12/23.
UPS Next Day Air - last day Thursday 12/22 to ensure delivery on Friday 12/23.

See Scanner Master, our trusted partner for complete details and other great deals on police scanners and accessories!

That's it for now, till next time, stay safe and happy scanning!

-RF

Two APD Officers Fired After Video Beating Incident

2011-11-18T11:31:00.001-08:00

If its one thing I hate it's cops that think they are above the law can do what whatever they want. Case and point, this beating incident caught on a surveillance camera.

The video shows APD Officer Robert Woolever tackling and holding down a suspected car thief while while Officer John Doyle kicks and stomps the suspect repeatedly in the head.

After the suspect is restrained, the officers are shown in the video walking away and celebrating with a chest bump. (note: click full screen to see chest bumping a little better)

This is what APD Chief Ray Schultz had to say: "I've never seen something like this internal to the department of this level -- obviously shocking to me."

Schultz also said there's no question that the men involved used excessive force, and that's exactly why he fired them and that the men's behavior in the video is disturbing and criminal.

While the investigation is ongoing, I believe that these officers should be charged with felony assault. There is just no excuse for this kind of conduct in law enforcement. Watch the video and judge for yourself...

From our Facebook page, Mary F. left the following comment about the video:

"So outrageous. These bad apples are why young people are losing respect for law enforcement. As with everything, it only takes a few rotten apples to ruin the bunch! Sad :( "

I totally agree with Mary as I could not have said it better myself...

Got a comment about this post? Let us know in the comment section or head on over to our Facebook page.

That's it for now. Until next time, stay safe and happy scanning!

-RF

Scanner Audio Recording Software

2011-11-16T00:30:00.000-08:00

Scanner audio recording software programs allow you record audio signal such as radio scanner communications to .WAV, .MP3, and other file format for easy playback via Windows Media, RealPlayer, WinAmp, and other media players.

Why Use Recording Software?

There are several reasons to use scanner audio recording software.

It's great for recording scanner transmissions when you are unable to listen to your scanner at a particular time for whatever reason, and listen to it when it's more convenient.

It's great for recording police & fire channels that hardly ever have any activity and catch rarely heard conversations.

It's great if you want to record events such as pursuits or other interesting happenings and then share them via your Web page like here, or your Facebook page, blog, etc.

ScanRec Software

Although any audio recording software will work, there are some audio recording programs specifically designed for use with radio scanners.

I use ScanRec, which comes in a freeware, lite, and pro version. I like it because it works great and only records when a signal is actually present.

Voice Activated Recording (VOX)

ScanRec provides a switched voice activated (VOX) recorder that listens to the sound coming into the audio card and if the sound is above the minimum threshold, the recorder operates.

If the sound level falls below the threshold, the recorder pauses. This allows the user to save disk space when no sound is present in the signal.

The output WAV file also includes a text file log with the time stamp and duration of all transmissions recorded in the file. A link to download ScanRec is included below.

What You Will Need

Beside the software, you will need a 3.5mm mono or stereo male-male line jack such as the one pictured below.

You can find the line-in cable at any Radio Shack, Best Buy, Walmart, etc. for about $5.00

You simply plug one end into your headphone jack on your radio scanner and then plug the other end into the "Line In" jack of your computer's sound card or microphone jack on you laptop.

You can set the audio level of which Scanner Recorder starts to record the scanner's audio.

Scanner Recording Software Links:

Below are three of the most popular scanner recording programs available for download. You can also search Google using "scanner recording software" and look around in the results for a recording program you like.

+ Scanner Recorder

+ Xcorder

+ ID Tracker/ID Tracker II/ID Tracker III - ID Tracker's main purpose is to help find and identify new trunk system IDs. Supports recording of scanner audio to WAV files with time and date indexes.

I hope you enjoyed this post. Don't forget to check out our Facebook page for more cool stuff!

That's it for now, till next time, stay safe and happy scanning!

-RF

Nationwide Emergency Alert System Test

2011-11-07T20:47:00.000-08:00

This Wednesday, November 9, at 2 pm Eastern Standard Time, the first-ever nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) will take place.

At that time, the Federal Government will interrupt every TV broadcast, cable channel, radio station, and satellite radio program in the United States for 30 seconds.

This Is A Test, This Is Only A Test

No need to panic, there's no major emergency or other widespread disaster. But if there were such a national event, this is how the Federal Government would get the word out.

The Emergency Alert System (EAS)

The Emergency Alert System (EAS) is intended to provide key information immediately to all Americans in the event of a national emergency or major disaster.

This national emergency broadcast system will look and sound much like the current (and local) emergency warnings often seen on TV or heard on radio, but the scope is larger and it can be put under the direct control of the President.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and the National Weather Service (NWS) will all coordinate the test, but it's FEMA that actually transmits the alert code.

Why November 9th?

Why November 9th at 2:00PM ET?

According to FEMA, "November 9 is near the end of hurricane season and before the severe winter weather season begins in earnest," says the agency, "The 2:00 PM EST broadcast time will minimize disruption during rush hours, while ensuring that the test occurs during working hours across the United States."

See “Links of Interest” below for more information.

Links of Interest

FEMA: Nationwide EAS Test

FCC: Emergency Alert System Nationwide Test

That's it for now. Till next time, stay safe and happy scanning! And don't foget to follow us on our new Facebook page for exclusive content and more!

-RF

100 Safest Cities in America

2011-10-31T00:01:00.000-07:00

"Homicide"

A couple of weeks ago, I posted the blog entry "100 Most Dangerous Cities in Amercia".

In this post, I thought I would give you the flip side of the coin...or the Top 100 Safest Cities in America.

NeighborhoodScout.com has compiled exclusive crime data for individual neighborhoods with a population of 25,000 residents or more resulting in a list of the Top 100 Safest Cities in America.

About the Compilation

As with the 100 Most Dangerous Cities in America post, the list is derived from municipal crime statistics from the FBI and the U.S. Justice Department. According to NeighborhoodScout, data was gathered from all 17,000 local law enforcement agencies in the United States.

A relational database from the data was used to associate crime incidences from all of these law enforcement agencies to the specific local communities the agency covers, and hence in which community the crimes have occurred.

The data was then researched and a mathematical algorithm was developed to statistically estimate the incidences of both violent and property crimes for each neighborhood in America.

The project took nearly 6-months to complete and the resultant formulae produced numbers of crimes and crime rates for neighborhoods with upwards of 87% accuracy in most cases.

Types of Crimes Included in Data

Offenses included in the data:

Willful Homicide
Forcible Rape
Robbery
Burglary
Aggravated Assault
Larceny (over $50)
Motor Vehicle Theft
Arson

NeighborhoodScout's 100 Safest Cities

Below is a list of the Top 10 Safest Cities in America in order according to NeighborhoodScout’s Top 100.

If you live in one of the cities below and are reading this then you most likely have a police scanner and are already well aware of the low crime in your city because you hardly ever hear anything going on in your city.

I know, I live in Canyon Lake, one, if not, the safest city in Riverside County, CA. (it does help that were are a guard-gated community with just under 11,000 residents).

Point being, monitoring just my city is pretty boring. This is where monitoring the surrounding area comes in handy, a topic for an upcomming post.

Anyway, on with the top 10 Safest Cities (w/pop. of 25,000 or more):

10. Long Beach, NY
9. Plum, PA
8. Santa Cruz, CA
7. Franklin, MA
6. Manhattan, KS
5. Shaker Heights, OH
4. Parma, OH
3. Bowie, MD
2. Edina, MN
1. Pikesville, MD

A link to the complete list of 100 safest cities with detailed information on crimes for all 100 cities is included in the “Related Links of Interest” section below.

Related Links of Interest

If you live in one of the safest cities and monitor a scanner, tell us about it in the comment section. Please no profanity, vulgarity, or racial slurs.

That's it for now, till next time, stay safe and happy scanning!

-RF

Another Satellite Crashing to Earth This Week

2011-10-19T15:51:00.000-07:00

ROSAT Satellite

Okay, here we go again! Another decommissioned satellite will come crashing down to Earth this week.

If you recall it was just over 3 weeks ago that we had a U.S. decommissioned satellite, "UARS" (Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite), crash to Earth.

UARS fell harmlessly into the southern Pacific Ocean last month despite a 1 in 3,200 chance of someone being struck.

"ROSAT" (short for "Röntgensatellit")

This time it's a German Satellite called "ROSAT" (short for "Röntgensatellit") that is expected to re-enter the Earth's atmosphere between 21-23 October 2011.

With ROSAT, there is a 1 in 2,000 chance estimate that it could hit someone. This is a slightly higher level of risk than was calculated for the NASA UARS satellite, however any one individual’s odds of being struck are 1-in-14 trillion, given there are 7 billion people on the planet.

ROSAT orbits the earth every 90 minutes and according to the German Aerospace Centre, parts of the satellite, which is the size of a van, will burn up during re-entry but up to 30 fragments weighing a total of 1.87 tons could hit the ground sometime between Friday and Monday.

Impact Zone Unknown

The German Aerospace Centre says that even though they do not know where it will crash down, all countries around the globe between 53-degrees north and 53-degrees south could possibly be affected. That pretty much includes much of the earth outside the poles.

As it nears the re-entry dates, scientists will be able to more accurately estimate exactly when it will land to a window of about 10 hours. Check out the links in the "Related Links of Interest" section below for continued coverage.

What to Listen For On Your Scanner

Monitoring your local police and fire channels in your area as you normally do would be the best bet.

Should the impact zone be determined to be over the U.S., there will most likely be advisories put out over police and fire channels in the impact zone alerting public safety personnel about the estimated debris and debris recovery procedure.

If you missed my UARS blog post, what you would hear over the scanner would be something similar to what was heard when the Space Shuttle Columbia broke apart on re-entry back in February 1, 2003.

That said, check out Google's News Coverage on ROSAT for updated info on impact locations and keep your eyes on the sky and your ear on the scanner!

Related Links of Interest

That's it for now, till next time stay safe and happy scanning!

-RF

100 Most Dangerous Cities in America

2011-10-13T00:01:00.000-07:00

PoliceAndFirePhotos.com

NeighborhoodScout.com has compiled exclusive crime data for individual neighborhoods with a population of 25,000 residents or more resulting in a list of the 100 Most Dangerous Cities in America.

About the Compilation

The list is derived from municipal crime statistics from the FBI and the U.S. Justice Department. According to NeighborhoodScout, data was gathered from all 17,000 local law enforcement agencies in the United States.

A relational database from the data was used to associate crime incidences from all of these law enforcement agencies to the specific local communities the agency covers, and hence in which community the crimes have occurred.

The data was then researched and a mathematical algorithm was developed to statistically estimate the incidences of both violent and property crimes for each neighborhood in America.

The project took nearly 6-months to complete and the resultant formulae produced numbers of crimes and crime rates for neighborhoods with upwards of 87% accuracy in most cases.

Types of Crimes Included in Data

Offenses included in the data:

Willful Homicide
Forcible Rape
Robbery
Burglary
Aggravated Assault
Larceny (over $50)
Motor Vehicle Theft
Arson

NeighborhoodScout’s Most Dangerous Cities

Below is a list of the Top 10 Most Dangerous Cities in America in order according to NeighborhoodScout’s Top 100.

If you live in one of the cities below and are reading this then you most likely have a police scanner and are already well aware of the crime in your city.

10. Oakland, CA
9. Wilmington, DE
8. Spartanburg, SC
7. St. Louis, MO
6. Camden, NJ
5. West Memphis, AR
4. Salisbury, MD
3. Las Vegas, NV
2. Chester, PA
1. Saginaw, MI

A link to the complete list with detailed information on crimes for all 100 cities is included in the “Related Links of Interest” section below.

Forbes’ Most Dangerous Cities

Forbes Magazine recently put out its own list of America’s Top 10 Most Dangerous Cities with a population of 200,000 residents or more. Here is their list:

10 Rockford, IL
9 Las Vegas, NV
8 Tallahassee, FL
7 Stockton, CA
6 Lubbock TX
5 Anchorage, AK
4 Flint, MI
3 Springfield, IL
2 Memphis, TN
1 Detroit, MI

A link to the Forbes article is included in the “Related Links of Interest” section below.

Related Links of Interest

If you live in one of the most dangerous cities, tell us about it in the comment section. Please no profanity, vulgarity, or racial slurs.

That's it for now, till next time, stay safe and happy scanning!

-RF

Danger From Above: Satellite Crashing to Earth This Week!

2011-09-19T09:18:00.000-07:00

NASA's UARS Satellite

Okay people, here we go, all eyes on the sky and ears on the scanner! There will be some interesting listening going on this week, possibly in your neck of the woods!

As you may have already heard, "UARS" (Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite), a U.S. research satellite the size of a small bus, will make an uncontrolled re-entry into Earth's atmosphere on Sept. 23, plus or minus one day. That puts the re-entry window between Thursday and Saturday of this week.

Danger from Above, An Uncontrolled Re-Entry

A NASA report states that approximately 26 potentially hazardous objects (pieces) of the satellite will survive the uncontrolled re-entry burn and make ground impact.

The debris field is estimated to be approx 500 miles long, and at this point and time, the impact zone cannot be determined until the satellite actually begins re-entry.

Current tracking projections place the potential impact zone (on Sept. 23) along the eastern U.S. coast.

NASA Population Risk Assessment

The NASA report further states that the estimated human casualty risk is 1 in 3,200 that one of the world’s 7 billion inhabitants will be struck. By comparison, the odds of being struck by lightning in the U.S. in any year (according to National Geographic) are 1 in 700,000.

1 in 3,200 is starting to not sound so good...

Monitoring Your Scanner

Monitoring the normal police and fire channels in your area would be the best bet. Once the impact zone has been determined, there will most likely be advisories put out over police and fire channels alerting public safety personnel about the estimated debris impact zone and debris recovery procedure.

This is my take on what you would most likely hear over the scanner if you are in the impact zone. This would be something similar to what was heard when the Space Shuttle Columbia broke apart on re-entry back in February 1, 2003.

That Space Shuttle Columbia event was unexpected so advisories on this event are a guesstimate on my part. You can hear the Space Shuttle Columbia Debris Advisory on page 3 of my recorded scanner audio page here.

About UARS (Upper Atmospheric Research Satellite)

The satellite was launched in 1991 by the Space Shuttle Discovery and was officially decommissioned on Dec. 14, 2005. It is 35 feet long, 15 feet in diameter, weighs 13,000 pounds, and carries 10 instruments. UARS orbits at an altitude of 375 miles with an orbital inclination of 57 degrees.

There are several more viewing opporunities for your area before it comes crashing down. Check out the UARS Satellite Tracking link below for viewing ops in your area.

Related Links of Interest:

NASA: About UARS

NASA UARS Real-time Satellite Tracking

NASA UARS Risk Assessment (detailed pdf report)

Facts About NASA’s Doomed UARS Satellite

This post will not be updated. For those of you on my mailing list, I will send out more information on the impact zone as soon as it is determined and if any further information warants.

If you are not on my (Police-Scanner.info and this blog's) mailing list, you can join here and never miss a site update or blog post.

That's it for now, till next time, stay safe and keep your eye on the sky above!

-RF

Massive Power Outage Affecting Southwest U.S. Right Now

2011-09-08T17:28:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note to let you all know that there is a massive power outage affecting the Southwestern U.S. right now. The outage began around 3:40 P.M. PT and is affecting all of San Diego County and parts of Orange County, eastern Riverside County, Imperial County, part of Arizona, Tijuana, Mexico down to Ensenada.

Here is western Riverside County where I am, we have power. I feel for those without power as it is still hot outside. My thermometer reads 98 degrees at 5:20 P.M., however, it did get up to 108 degrees earlier today. Read about the outage on San Diego Fox5 News...

UPDATE 5:50PM: The loss of power led to a shutdown of two reactors at the San Onofre nuclear power plant, which is about 27 miles from my location! AHHHH! According to the Los Angeles Times, officials say power may be out until sometime late tomorrow evening.

On a side note, I feel even worse for those without power, NO OPENING DAY NFL FOOTBALL!! :-( - (Green Bay up 7-0 midway through 1st Qtr.)

-RF

Discovering Unknown or Unlisted Active Frequencies

2011-08-31T21:19:00.000-07:00

One of the exciting things about radio scanning is discovering unknown or unlisted frequencies that are being used in your area or near you.

For example, I was once visiting a Raging Waters Theme Park with my family and witnessed security officers racing through a crowd and out of sight. I quickly got my scanner out of my wife’s bag and turned it on.

I already had the security frequency programmed, but did not hear anything. After a few minutes of hearing nothing, I decided to conduct a frequency search and found an unlisted frequency being used by security. It turns out that they were responding to break up a fight between several teenagers.

As you can see, this is a handy feature to familiarize yourself with. Searching for frequencies can be done in two ways.

Preprogrammed Service Search

All modern scanners come with a feature called "Preprogrammed Service Search", indicated by the “SVC” or “Search” button. This feature is handy for finding unknown or unlisted frequencies being used near you.

The Preprogrammed Service Search allows you to search through a preprogrammed range of frequencies including; Police/Fire, Marine, CB, FRS/GMRS/MURS, Aircraft, HAM/Amateur Radio, and Weather.

These ranges cover frequencies for public safety, news media, TV broadcast audio, HAM/Amateur Radio, special low power radios, railroad, marine, and much more.

You can toggle search services on and off to focus on a certain range of interest or search all at one time. In marine or CB bands, you can search or manually select a channel.

In addition, some search services such as Police/Fire and HAM bands, may have several group ranges within them.

Using Limit Search

If you scanner does not come with a Preprogrammed Service Search function, almost all have a "Limit Search" where you can set the scanner to search between a "Low" and High" range of frequencies you choose.

Common Search Ranges

Below are common search ranges from Low to High that you can manually enter and search:

29.000 – 50.000 MHz Gov't, business, two-way radio.
50.000 – 54.000 MHz 6-meter Amateur Radio
108.000 – 136.000 MHz Aircraft
138.000 - 144.000 MHz Government
144.000 - 148.000 MHz 2-meter Amateur Radio
160.110 - 161.565 MHz Railroad Operations
150.000 - 174.000 MHz Shared by Business, Maritime, Weather, & Public Safety
406.000 – 420.000 MHz Government
420.000 – 450.000 MHz Amateur Radio
450.000 – 470.000 MHz Shared by Business, Industry, Government, & Public Safety
470.000 – 512.000 MHz Public Safety
806.000 – 940.000 MHz “800 Band” Public Safety
851.000 – 866.000 MHz Business & Public Safety
866.000 – 869.000 MHz Public Safety

Keep in mind that not all scanners can receive all the bands above. Refer to your scanner's manual for details on what your scanner can and can't receive. Need a manual? Check out my previous post "Where to Find Police Scanner User Manuals".

That's it for now! Till next time, stay safe and happy scanning!

-RF

Hurricane Irene Takes Aims for Eastern Seaboard

2011-08-25T02:25:00.000-07:00

Editor’s Note: I am back writing again comfortably after my accident. For those unfamiliar with my accident, you can read about it on Police-Scanner.info's mainpage. Now, moving on to this post…

First an earthquake, now a hurricane!

Mother Nature seems to have a grudge towards the East Coast this week. Unless you have been living under a rock, you know that the East Coast was struck with a Magnitude 5.8 Earthquake Tuesday afternoon.

The earthquake was widely felt by an estimated 11 million people in 12 states. Luckily it was only a Magnitude 5.8 earthquake and only minimal damage and no injuries reported. Living here in Southern California all my life, a Magnitude 5.8 is usually a bump in the day or as one Twitter user put it “5.8? That's what us Californians use to stir our coffee with :) "

However, for you East Coasters, it’s not over yet as Hurricane Irene is now on track to skim the eastern seaboard staring Friday afternoon and make landfall somewhere between North Carolina and Long Island, NY, possibly Manhattan on Saturday or Sunday afternoon and up into New England.

Right now Irene, a category 3 hurricane, is tearing NW through the Bahamas moving at 11 mph. Currently packing 120+ mph winds with gust to 150+ mph, Irene is expected to strengthen a bit before landfall.

That said, evacuations are underway in North Carolina coastal areas and the U.S. Navy has ordered all its ships in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia, which includes Norfolk and Newport News, to prepare to get under way within 24 hours as a precaution.

So, if you live on the eastern coast, it's time to batten down the hatches, board the windows, and get ready for Irene. Better yet, got out of dodge before roads get shut down. I'm hearing on the Weather Channel that there is already 8-10 mile traffic back-ups out of the Carolinas. I will post updates to this post when possible.

To stay informed with the latest information, check out the following sites:

+ National Weather Service - National Hurricane Center

+ Weather Underground - Hurricane Irene Coverage

+ Google: Hurricane Irene News Coverage

+ Emergency Kits - Affordable and Customizable. Stay Safe!

+ Severe Weather Scanning/Frequencies

That's it for now, till next time stay safe!

-RF

USAR Task Force 1 & 2 Heading to Japan

2011-03-12T00:49:00.000-08:00

United States Urban Search and Rescue teams, Virginia Task Force 1 ("VA-TF1") and California Task Force 2 ("CA-TF2") were activated on Friday by USAID.

The teams are mobilizing for deployment to Japan on behalf of the United States in the aftermath of the massive magnitude-8.9 earthquake and tsunami that has devastated Northern Japan.

Ready for Disaster!

Both VA-TF1 and CA-TF2 are specially-trained and equipped 72-person Urban Search and Rescue Task Forces consisting of Los Angeles County (CA) and Fairfax County (VA) Fire Department firefighters, paramedics, rescue specialists, emergency room physicians, structural engineers, heavy equipment specialists, canine search dogs and handlers, hazardous materials technicians, communications specialists, and logistics specialists.

Each unique technical rescue team responds with 55,000 pounds of prepackaged search and rescue tools and medical equipment to conduct around-the-clock search and rescue operations at domestic and international disasters, both natural and man-made.

A Witness to Deployment

Last year, both Task Force Teams were depoyed to Haiti after Haiti's deadly earthquake. California Task Force 2 (CA-TF2) deployed from March Air Base in Riverside County on their 8-hour flight. March Air Base is 14 miles north of Canyon Lake, CA where I live. I was able to watch the take-off live on our local news and went outside to witness the massive Military C-17 carrying the CA-TF1 crew fly low right over of my home accending on it's journey to devastation.

I have personally seen the LA County Fire USAR team in action after the magnitude-6.7 Northridge earthquake in 1994 (Jan. 17) while I was a photographer for LA County Fire and all I can say is these guys are "fearless badasses", the best of the best heading into the worst of the worst!

* Photos above are provided courtesy of the L.A. County Fire Dept.

USAID Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance

VA-TF1 and CA-TF2 are partnered in providing the U.S. Agency for International Development’s ("USAID") Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance with humanitarian assistance in the form of collapsed structure search and rescue, in response to natural and man-made disasters, throughout the world.

Both task forces have also deployed nationally to the Oklahoma City Bombing, The Pentagon, Hurricanes Katrina and Isabel as well as international deplyments to the bombing in Kenya, earthquakes in Turkey, Taiwan, Iran, and Haiti.

Help Needed! How You Can Help

If you wish to help, you can donate to the American Red Cross for Japan in the following ways:

1. Make an unrestricted donation to the International Response Fund at www.redcross.org by clicking on the Donate Now button.

2. Call in a donation to the Red Cross at 1-800-REDCROSS or for Spanish call 1-800-257-7575.

3. By texting "REDCROSS" to 90999 to send a $10 donation to the Red Cross, through an effort backed by the U.S. State Department (http://www.state.gov/). Your donation will be automatically billed to your cell phone.

Or, visit the site below to learn more about ongoing disaster relief in Japan:

+ InterAction - List of Agencies Accepting Donations

And Finally...

Family members trying to locate U.S. citizens living or traveling in Japan should contact the U.S. Department of State, Office of Overseas Citizens Services, at 1-888-407-4747 or (202) 647-5225.

Related Links of Interest

+ California Task Force 2 International Urban Search & Rescue

+ Virgina Task Force 1 International Urban Search & Rescue

+ CNN News Coverage

+ Preparing for a Major Earthquake or Disaster

+ Police Scanners & Emergency Preparedness

That all for now, let's hope for the best for Japan's survivors...

-RF

URGENT!! TSUNAMI WATCH ISSED FOR HAWAII & WEST COAST OF U.S!!

2011-03-11T01:32:00.000-08:00

A Massive Magnitude 8.9 Earthquake Struck Japan at 9:46 PT on March 10, 2011! A Tsunami Watch and Advisory has been issued from West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center!!

If you live near the beach areas anywhere in the Western US, monitor your police scanner and watch CNN or MSN for latest news! Those of you in Hawaii, get to higher ground as Hawaii is expecting a 6-7 foot tsunami around 3:00AM Hawaii time! West Coast around 6:00AM!

For updates on the advisory below, go to:

+ Tsunami Watch and Advisory
http://wcatwc.arh.noaa.gov/

+ Magnitude 8.9 - NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/usc0001xgp.php

-RF
======================================
To: U.S. West Coast, Alaska, and British Columbia coastal regions

From: NOAA/NWS/West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center
Subject: Tsunami Watch and Advisory #3 issued 03/10/2011 at 11:33PM PST

UPDATED MAGNITUDE TO 8.8 – Japan Region

The Tsunami Advisory continues in effect for the coastal areas of Alaska from Chignik Bay, Alaska to Attu, Alaska.

The Tsunami Watch continues in effect for the coastal areas of California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia and Alaska from the California-Mexico border to Chignik Bay, Alaska.

A Tsunami Advisory means that a tsunami capable of producing strong currents or waves dangerous to persons in or very near the water is expected. Significant, widespread inundation is not expected for areas under an advisory. Currents may be hazardous to swimmers, boats, and coastal structures and may continue for several hours after the initial wave arrival.

A Tsunami Watch means that all coastal residents in the watch area should prepare for possible evacuation. A tsunami watch is issued to areas which will not be immediately impacted by the tsunami. Watch areas will either be upgraded to warning or advisory status, or canceled.

At 9:46 PM Pacific Standard Time on March 10, an earthquake with preliminary magnitude 8.8 occurred near the east coast of Honshu, Japan . (Refer to the United States Geological Survey for official earthquake parameters.) This earthquake has generated a tsunami which could cause damage to coastal regions in a warning or advisory. The waves are expected to first reach Shemya, Alaska at 12:13 AM AKST on March 11. Estimated tsunami arrival times and maps along with safety rules and other information can be found on the WCATWC web site listed below.

Measurements of reports of tsunami activity:

TSUNAMI OBSERVED ON DEEP OCEAN BUOY
UPGRADED MAGNITUDE TO 8.8

Tsunamis can be dangerous waves that are not survivable. Wave heights are amplified by irregular shoreline and are difficult to forecast. Tsunamis often appear as a strong surge and may be preceded by a receding water level. Mariners in water deeper than 600 feet should not be affected by a tsunami. Wave heights will increase rapidly as water shallows. Tsunamis are a series of ocean waves which can be dangerous for several hours after the initial wave arrival. DO NOT return to evacuated areas until an all clear is given by local civil authorities.
Pacific coastal regions outside California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska should refer to the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center messages for information on the event.

For Updates, Go To: http://wcatwc.arh.noaa.gov/

Police Officer Line of Duty Deaths in 2010

2011-03-10T22:10:00.000-08:00

I would like to take this time to pause and remember the 161 police officers killed in the line of duty in 2010. In this post, I will focus on Police Officer line of duty deaths and firefighter fatalities in the next post.

On average, one law enforcement officer is killed in the line of duty somewhere in the United States every 53 hours. Since the first known line-of-duty death in 1792, nearly 19,000 U.S. law enforcement officers have made the ultimate sacrifice.

Spike in Line of Duty Deaths

2010 was a particularly deadly year for law enforcement, especially after 2009’s 50-year low of 117. According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial fund, deaths in the line of duty jumped 37% to 161 in 2010.

There was also a 24 percent spike in shooting deaths from 49 deaths in 2009 to 61 in 2010. The spike in deaths is attributed to “Cluster killings”, more than one officer killed in a single incident. Five multiple fatality shootings accounted for nearly 20 percent of all fatal shootings.

Multiple fatality incidents occurred in: Fresno, CA (2 Officers from separate agencies), San Juan, PR (2 Officers), West Memphis, AR (2 Officers), Tampa, FL (2 Officers), and Hoonah, AK (2 Officers), accounting for 10 officer deaths, or 20 percent of all fatal shootings.

For the third year in a row, Texas (19), Florida (9) and California (11) were in the top five states with the most fatalities - a combined total of 39, or 24 percent of the national total for 2010.

Thirty nine states, along with the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico experienced officer fatalities in 2010. Eleven federal law enforcement officers died in the line of duty in 2010, including three U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers and two agents from the U.S. Border Patrol.

Leading Cause of Line of Duty Deaths

Preliminary data from the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund show that for the 13th year in a row, traffic fatalities were the leading cause of officer fatalities, with 73 officers killed in the line of duty—an increase of 43 percent from 2009.

Of the 73 traffic-related fatalities in 2010, 50 officers died in automobile crashes, 16 were struck and killed by automobiles while outside of their vehicles, 1 died in a bicycle accident, and 6 died in motorcycle crashes.

The average age of the officers killed in 2010 was 41; the average length of their law enforcement service was nearly 12 years and on average each officer left behind 2 children. By gender, 154 officers were male and 7 officers were female.

Source: NLEOMF: "Law Enforcement Fatalities Spike Dangerously in 2010"

Fallen Hero Memorials

Below you will find links to Police Officer Memorials. If you have the time, visit the memorials and read some of the entries. I am sure you will be deeply moved as I always am by the countless stories of selfless courage and heroism exhibited by police officers and firefighters who lost their lives while serving and protecting the citizens of this great nation in 2010 and years past.

Also, there are also links to donate to police officer memorial funds. All donations go towards helping families of officers killed in the line of duty get through the difficult times of their loss.

Related Links of Interest

• Officer Down Memorial Page

• Latest Officer Down Headlines

• National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund

• Police-Scanner.info's First Responder Tribute Page

• Article: "Why Police Officer Deaths Rose 37% in 2010"

That's it for now, until next time, stay safe and thank a police officer for their service next time you see one, they will appreciate it!

-RF

GRE PSR-310 Analog Trunking Handheld Scanner

2011-02-19T17:10:00.000-08:00

The PSR-310 is the new generation of scanners designed for ease of use, yet are powerful enough to satisfy the most sophisticated experts.

Common data entry, browsing and control methods are used for non-trunked conventional channels, trunking talkgroups, search configurations and Spectrum Sweeper setups.

Here are a few of the impressive features:

New Object Oriented User Interface - Memory is assigned as objects are created. Store over 1,800 conventional channels, trunking talkgroups, search configurations and Spectrum Sweeper objects in any combination.
Wide Band Reception
Multi-System Analog Trunking - Works with the following trunking systems: Motorola, EDACS Standard/Narrow, LTR Trunking, and supports the new 700MHz and 380MHz bands also can follow multisite Motorola systems
Full Dot Matrix Bitmap LCD Display with Real Time S-Meter - Provides one row of dedicated icons, and four rows of 16 alphanumeric characters programming and scanning operations.
Powerful and flexible Scan List Functionality - Arrange, group and scan objects according to your preference, with no limit to the number or types of objects in a Scan List, and no limit to the number of Scan Lists an object can be a member of.
Menu Driven Programming with Context Sensitive Help - Each menu item provides a few lines of help text that provide assistance with programming and using the scanner.
SAME and All Hazards Weather Alerting - Operates in dedicated SAME mode, providing severe weather and other hazard alerts in the specified areas. Can also check the local NOAA weather frequency periodically, even while scanning, and alert when an All Hazards alert occurs.
SKYWARN Storm Spotter Functionality - Provides instant, one button access to frequencies used by storm spotter networks.
User Upgradable CPU Firmware - Stay current with software enhancements as they become available with free upgrades from www.greamerica.com.
CTCSS and DCS Functionality - Supports selective squelch operation on conventional analog channels. Search for codes that are in use and block unwanted transmissions.
Exclusive Multi-Color ALERT LED - Programmable multi-color LED can be configured to illuminate or flash when certain objects are active. Provides visual alerts when certain objects are active, e.g., blue can be used to signal activity on a primary police call, red for fire, etc. 7 color options to choose from.
Audible alarms - Programmable audible alarms can be configured to sound when certain objects are active. Can be used in conjunction with, or separately from, the ALERT LED described above.
High Speed PC Interface - Operates in full duplex mode at 6 times the speed of previous scanner models for PC transfer and 8 times the speed of previous models for radio-to-radio cloning.
Powerful Spectrum Sweeper - Quickly sweeps the scanners frequency ranges for transmissions from nearby transmitters.
Trunking Control Data Output - Streams decoded trunking control data to a personal computer for use with popular third party trunking control channel monitoring software. No slicer needed! Also streams NOAA weather radio SAME alert data!

What's in the Box:

Antenna
AC Power Adapter
Pre-programmed frequency guide
Black non-chargeable battery holder
Yellow rechargeable battery holder
Belt Clip
User's Manual

PRICE: ONLY $199.95!

GRE's PRS-310 Handheld Scanner is available through our trusted partner Scannermaster!

That's it for now, till next post, stay safe and happy scanning!

-RF

A Message To All My Visitors

2011-02-14T16:09:00.000-08:00

To all my visitors. I would like to take this opportunity to briefly explain my long absence. After the last updates in mid-November, my step-grandmother became ill from pneumonia and slipped into a coma.

On December 15, she passed away at the long-life age of 94. She had been in our family since 1967, the year I was born. After her passing I decided that I needed time to be with my immediate family and cherish their company as we are only here but a brief time on this Earth.

Now that I have had the time to gather my thoughts, I feel I am ready to continue forward. That said, today I have begun working on updates for Police-Scanner.info, Police Scanner Blog, “Scannerhead” Newsletter, and the PoliceAndFireVideos.com and PoliceAndFirePhotos.com websites.

Updates for Police-Scanner.info will be completed and uploaded later this week. Police Scanner Blog posts will also resume later this week. The police and fire video and photos website updates will begin on March 1, 2011. And finally, the next issue of “Scannerhead” Newsletter will resume the first week of March with the March 2011 issue.

I thank you for your patience and continued visitorship and hope to provide useful and informative content to the scanning community for a long time to come.

As always, till next time, stay safe!

-RF

Birdie Frequencies

2010-11-23T03:31:00.000-08:00

Birdie frequencies are signals that are internally generated by a radio scanner that can cause interference with some frequencies.

Birdies typically ocur with or without the scanner's antenna attached. If you suspect that a birdie may be interfearing with a particular frequency or channel, try removing the antenna to see if the interfearance disapears.

If the interfearance disapears, the interfearance is most likely the result of electronic equiptment in the vicinity of the scanner.

The following is a list of commonly known birdie frequencies. If you have a problem with a birdie frequency, simply lock it out.

31.05
32.00
41.40
51.75
74.20
113.850
124.200
128.000
139.995
140.000
144.900
155.250
167.995
171.250
471.987
483.925
511.925

Refer to your scanner's manual for a complete list of birdie frequencies.

That's it for now. Till next time, stay safe and happy scanning!

Police Conduct in the News

2010-11-06T04:24:00.000-07:00

I came across a couple of interesting stories involving police conduct while surfing the web and thought I'd share them with you all. If you have a comment about either, leave them in the comment section.

+ "Officers Under Fire For Radio Chatter"

Indianapolis police and an area school district are investigating claims that officers are using radio frequencies without the proper permission.

John, a licensed ham radio operator and former police, fire and ambulance dispatcher who wanted to remain anonymous, told 6News' Jack Rinehart that late at night, he hears officers have conversations on a frequency licensed to Greenfield Schools.

"It wasn't the type of conversation I would expect to hear on that frequency," John said. "They were talking about cases they were working on. They were running license numbers and talking about people coming and going from an east side apartment complex."

John said he's recorded 72 hours of what sounded like car-to-car conversations, some of them not fit for broadcast. Read full story...

+ "Training Becomes Issue After Fatal Police Shooting"

A Boone County (IA) dispatcher who asked a caller to move closer to a knife-wielding suspect has not received basic training offered by the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy, Boone County Sheriff Ron Fehr told The Des Moines Register.

The suspect, who witnesses described as acting erratically, was fatally shot Oct. 25 by a Boone police officer inside a Hy-Vee Food Store.

When several people called 911 to report the suspect's behavior, Jeanie Driscoll, a dispatcher for 16 years, asked one caller, "Since you don't have visual on this guy, is there any way you can get to him?"

The caller replied: "Sure. Let me go down. I'm upstairs right now. I'll be just a sec, OK?"

The dispatcher failed to follow internationally recognized standards when she asked the caller to try to locate the suspect, a national group said last week. Read full story...

-RF

Scanning Tools: Local Area Maps

2010-10-23T04:41:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, local area maps are a must have tool for any scanner enthusiasts. Local area maps come in handy for looking-up incident locations, following police pursuits, suspect containments, just about anything going on.

Types of Maps

There are three options you have to choose from when looking a a map for your local area; print maps, mapping software, and online map sites. Each type has it's own pros and cons. For me, having more than one type is the way to go.

Let’s take a look at each. (links on where to buy or access online included below)

Map Books/Guides & Wall Maps

Printed map books such as Thomas Guides or Rand McNally guides come in state and regional editions, usually by single or multi-county areas. Thomas Guides are the best, but unfortunately they only cover the Western US where I live.

Map books run between $10-$32 and can usually be found at most supermarkets or department stores including Walmart, Save-On, Rite-Aid, etc. You can also find them on Amazon and eBay.

Wall Maps

Printed wall maps come in various sizes up to 28x40 and run between $3-$6. Like map books and guide, they can be found at supermarkets and department stores. They can also be found at gas stations.

Wall maps can be neatly folded up and taken along with you when you travel or are out and about.

PC Map Software

PC Map software offers street level viewing for locations in the United States and Canada. I recommend Microsoft Streets & Trips.

The costs is around $40 new, but can be found on ebay for less. Streets & Trips provides you with detailed street maps for the entire U.S. and general maps for the rest of the world.

Map software is easy to install and use and come with lots of great features including full zoom to street level and panning left, right, up, down, and more.

Online Maps

If you don’t want to spend money on print maps/books or map software, you have a third option. You can view maps online using the resources below. Most online maps sites offer satellite view, overlays and more.

The downside of online maps is that you have to have Internet access to view the maps. Note: maps can also be viewed on cell phones that are Internet-capable or that have map apps for download.

Where to Buy/Access Maps

Thomas Guide Maps - print map books, wall maps, and map software for Western US.

Rand McNally - print atlases, wall maps, map software, and online maps.

DeLorme Maps - print maps and map software.

Microsoft Streets & Trips - map software.

Bing Maps - online maps.

Google Maps - online maps.

Yahoo! Maps - online maps.

Map Quest - online maps.

That's it for now, till next time, stay safe and happy scanning.

-RF

Great California ShakeOut 2010!

2010-10-19T02:48:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again! It's the Great California ShakeOut 2010!

The Great California ShakeOut is the largest annual statewide earthquake drill held on the third Thursday of October each year.

ShakeOut is based on a magnitude 7.8 earthquake striking along the southern section of the San Andreas fault causing widespread damage and destruction.

The purpose of the ShakeOut is to help public safety agencies, citizens, businesses, and organizations prepare for a major earthquake and practice how to protect ourselves when they happen.

ShakeOut History

ShakeOut began as the "Great Southern California ShakeOut" (2008). It was the largest earthquake drill in U.S. history at the time with a total of 5.4 million participants spanning eight counties in the southern part of the state.

For it's second year the Great California ShakeOut (2009) expanded to include all 58 counties, divided into 11 areas. More than 6.9 million Californians participated, practicing "Drop, Cover and Hold On" and other aspects of family, school, and organizational emergency plans.

This year, on October 21 at 10:21 a.m. (PT), 7.2 million+ people in California (as of 10/19) will practice "Drop, Cover and Hold On" in the ShakeOut!

In addition, this year Nevada and Guam will also be joining California with a drill on the same day (October 21). In April, 8 Central States will hold their own Shakeout.

About Earthquakes

Earthquakes can strike anywhere at anytime without warning. In fact, thousands of earthquakes occur everyday throughout the world with most too small to even be noticed.

The danger lies in the number of strong, or even worse, major quakes that strike periodically. These quakes have the potential to cause severe widespread damage, death and serious injury if they strike near populated areas.

Having personally experienced every major shaker to hit Southern California starting with the 6.6M San Fernando Quake (Feb. 1971), I can attest to the awesome force of "intense" ground shaking generated by a 6.0+ or 7.0+ magnitude earthquake.

There is just something about watching every single thing around you shaking violently all at once in different directions that is, well let's just say, unforgettable!

In 2008, I monitored Los Angeles County Fire department communications on my scanner during the drill and was amazed as to the extent of the drill and simulated rescue operations occurring in real time - even one scenario involving a fire station collapse with firefighters trapped!

Visit the official California ShakeOut Website below to register and/or get instructions for Families, Individuals, Schools, Businesses, etc., on how to plan your drill, get prepared, and participate in the ShakeOut. There are also videos, audio files, and earthquake animations to check out.

Related Links of Interest:

Great California ShakeOut Website

ShakeOut Scenario Mainshock M7.8 Intensity Shakemap

Southern California ShakeOut Ground Shake Animations

2008 ShakeOut Drill Broadcast - YouTube

USGS World Map of Current Earthquakes

Police Scanners & Emergency Preparedness

Well, that's it for now. Till next time...stay safe and happy scanning!

- RF

NEW!: Uniden's HomePatrol Scanner

2010-10-13T01:54:00.000-07:00

Uniden HomePatrol

What is Uniden's HomePatrol?

Just in time for Christmas! HomePatrol is Uniden's newest digital-capable scanner to hit the market (Oct. 1, 2010) and the easiest to operate as HomePatrol makes programming a thing of the past!

WHAT? NO MORE PROGRAMMING?

How's this for easy, simply enter a zip code (or a city name) and HomePatrol will auto load load Police, Fire and EMS channels and frequencies, trunking systems, alpha tags and sub-audible tones for that area. You can be up and running in minutes!

That's not all. If you travel, you can get a special GPS receiver and HomePatrol will automatically re-program itself based on your location.

So as you can see, NO PROGRAMMING NEEDED, just your zip code. Once your zip code is entered, you are up and running! HomePatrol makes the perfect gift! View it in action here.

Product Features

HomePatrol comes with a Color Touch Screen (first in the industry) and even has Record/Replay capability built-in so that you can record and reply transmissions at anytime!

There are just too many features to list here, but here are a few:

Digital-Capable
Color Touch Screen
Factory Programmed for all known radio systems (US and Canada)
Auto-Programming w/ GPS receiver (receiver not included)
Programming software included to customize what you scan
You can Create Favorites Lists
Built-in Record/Replay capability
2GB Micro SD for storing favorites lists and recording transmissions
Simple database and firmware upgrade capability

What's in the Box:

Flex Antenna
AC Power Adapter
DC Power Cable
Desk Stand
USB Cable
Four AA NiMH Rechargeable Batteries
Quick Start Guide

PRICE: $495.00

Uniden's HomePatrol is available through our trusted partner Scannermaster!

Where to Get Police Scanner User Manuals

2010-09-24T17:42:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! Hope this post finds you all safe and in good spirits. Are you in need of a manual for your scanner?

Lost or Misplaced Your Scanner's Manual?

Let's face it, there are a number of reasons why you may be in need of a manual for your scanner. Maybe you lost/misplaced it or perhaps you bought a used scanner at a yard sale or pawn shop and it did not come with one.

Whatever the case may be, worry not. Scanner user manuals for just about every model of radio scanner can can be found online and available from the manufacturers own websites.

Radio Scanner User Manuals Online

Below are links to the five most popular manufacturer brands of radio scanners and receivers where you can find a manual for your scanner. So, if your in need of a user manual for your radio scanner, check out the following sites:

Radio Shack PRO Model Scanner Manuals

Uniden Bearcat Model Scanner User Manuals

GRE PSR Model Scanner User Manuals

AOR Model Scanner User Manuals

Alinco Model Scanner User Manuals

Well, that's all for now, till next time, stay safe and happy scanning.

-Ruben Flores
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

Got a comment about this post, share your thoughts about this post in the comments section.

Criminals Put Scanner Hobbyists In Bad Light

2010-09-21T02:30:00.000-07:00

While it is true that a miniscule number of criminals do use police scanners to assist in their criminal activity, the vast majority of scanner listeners are law-abiding citizens like me.

In A Bad Light

As I previously mentioned in the post "Police Scanners & the Law", I never go anywhere without my scanner and over the last twenty-something years, I have been pulled over a few times for minor traffic violations and have never had a problem with having a scanner. However, this is not always the case, especially in high crime areas.

Unfortunately, criminals who get caught with police scanners put us law abiding citizens in a bad light with law enforcement which often results in police officers having the mind set of "if they have a scanner, they must be doing something illegal".

In addition, this is often used by law enforcement to push for "encrypted" or blocked communications because "criminals are listening in". What they don't take into consideration is that us law-abiding citizens are an extra set of eyes and actually help law enforcement when crimes are committed in our neighborhoods.

Should you be questioned by an officer as to why you have a scanner, be patient and just answer the questions honestly and everything should be fine. For more info, see "Police Scanners & the Law".

Police Scanners in the News

So, here are a few examples of criminals who were recently caught with and/or using police scanners to facilitate their crimes:

Scotts Valley: Police Release Photo of Suspected Cop Impersonator - excerpt: "Akira Kelcasy Kelly was arrested Sept. 3 after police watched him fit a decommissioned police cruiser with a radar detector, siren, PA system, police lights and a scanner, according to Scotts Valley police Sgt. Mike Dean." Read full story...

1 Arrested, 1 Sought in School Burglary - excerpt: "One of the men appeared to have a police scanner in his pocket and when officers reported to police dispatchers the scene they were witnessing, both men fled." Read full story...

Serial Burglar Used Police Scanner - excerpt: "It’s believed a suspected serial burglar used a portable police scanner to stay one step ahead of the cops." Read full story...

I know, dumbest criminals right...

Well, that's all for now, till next time, stay safe and happy scanning.

-Ruben Flores
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info
Got a comment about this post, share your thoughts about this post in the comments section.

Getting Your Radio Scanner Repaired

2010-09-13T00:02:00.000-07:00

So you dropped your scanner and now it doesn't work. Or, your scanner just stopped working unexpectedly!?! It happens. It's happend to me several times over the last 28+ years of scanning.

What to do? Buy a new one? Well, maybe if you have the cash laying around. However, that may not be an option with today's expensive digital scanners. Why not have it repaired?

Radio Scanner Repair Services

The following are known reputable radio scanner repair service centers. I have personally used Radio Shack and Uniden for my scanner repairs because of their quick turnaround time, however G&G Communications has been around for many years and are well known in the scanning community.

So, if your police scanner is in need of repair, check out the following repair services:

G&G Communication Repair Information
7825 Black Street Rd, LeRoy, N.Y. 14482
Phone: 585-768-8151 / Fax: 585-768-7175
E-mail - ggcomm@aol.com

Radio Shack Repair Service
Repairs Radio Shack Pro Model scanners.Repair fees are around $40 flat fee with a $10 deposits. Average 10-15 day service turnaround with 90-day warranty. Visit a Radio Shack near you for complete details or click here to view their store locator.

Uniden America Corporation
PARTS & SERVICE DIVISION
4700 Amon Carter Blvd.
Fort Worth, TX 76155-2297
(800) 297-1023, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
(Central Time, Monday through Friday)

That's it for now, till next time stay safe!

If you have any comments about this post or if you have used any of the above services and want to share your experience with others, please post in the comment section.

-RF

Widespread Fake Amber Alerts

2010-08-25T03:21:00.000-07:00

I wanted to take this time to let you all know about Fake Amber Alerts that are running rampant across the Internet and how to authenticate them.

An AMBER Alert or a Child Abduction Emergency is a child abduction alert bulletin issued upon the suspected abduction of a child.

Fake Amber Alert

Yesterday morning I received a text message from my 24-yr old daughter about an Amber Alert that went something like this:

“AMBER ALERT!!!!! A 3yr old boy taken in Stockton by a man driving a ’96 BMW plate #98B351NM. Keep it going. U would if he was urs!!”

Now, my first thought reaction was…“oh shoot, not again?!” – I then immediately went over to my Website, Police-Scanner.info, to confirm the alert.

You see, I have a “Code Amber Alert Ticker” (figure 1) prominently displayed on my mainpage and any active Amber Alert (figure 2) would be displayed on a live rolling ticker at which time you can click on an alert to view detailed information on the alert itself.

Figure 1

Figure 2

Upon viewing the Code Amber ticker on my site, I did not see an alert for California so I went over to the Code Amber website (link below) to see all active alerts and found that there was no such alert issued in California.

It was then that I figured this had to be a hoax so I headed on over to Snopes.com, the Hoax/Urban Legends Reference site to see if it was listed as a hoax.

Low and behold, it was a hoax. It turns out that fake Amber Alerts are a common occurance on the net and and are spread via Facebook, Twitter, and text messaging. (You can read about it for yourself here)

Authenticating Amber Alerts

Amber Alerts are a serious matter as it involves the abduction of a child. If you see an Amber Alert on Facebook or Twitter or receive an alert via text message, before forwarding it to everyone in your address book, verify its authenticity by checking the Active Amber Alerts page (link below) on the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children Website (link below) or the Code Amber Website (link below).

This way we can all do our part to limit the propagation of such fake alerts and forward real Amber Alert where real children are in danger.

Related Links of Interest

Got a comment about this post? Share your thoughts in the comment section.

That's all for now, till next time, stay safe.

-Ruben Flores
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

ST-2 Omni-directional Scanner Antenna

2010-08-18T02:37:00.000-07:00

The ST-2 Scanner Antenna

Want to double your scanner's reception?

Then you should check out this handy roof top antenna kit, the ST-2 Omni-directional Outdoor Scanner Antenna!

This improved, double insulated, omni-directional heavy duty ST-2 Outdoor Scanner Antenna comes with elements which are resonant in the 30-54 MHz,108-174 MHz, 450-470 MHz, 470-512 MHz, and 800-912 MHz bands. They work together to give you frequency coverage from 30 MHz to 1300 MHz.

The ST-2 Outdoor Antenna comes complete with a matching transformer, 50 feet of RG-6 coaxial cable and an F-to-BNC adapter. It also comes pre-assembled for easy set-up and is is 102 inches in height and can be placed on the outside of your home/office or in the attic.

You will find the ST-2 Outdoor Antenna with its 15 elements will double your reception on UHF and VHF high/low bands. This amazing antenna will help you get the most action your handheld or base scanner was designed for!

Get it now at our trusted partner

Scannermaster for Only $59.95!

That's all for now, till next time, stay safe.

Got a comment about this post? Share your thoughts in the comment section.

-Ruben Flores
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

If you enjoy reading my blog, buy me a beer. (Suggested: $3 a beer or $7.5 for a pitcher)

Two New Police/Fire Related Websites

2010-08-05T02:03:00.000-07:00

I am happy to announce that I have just launched two new Police & Fire-related Websites for your enjoyment.

PoliceAndFirePhotos.com

The first site is PoliceAndFirePhotos.com. This site is the new home for the popular Police & Fire Photo Gallery section at Police-Scanner.info. Here is where you will find police and fire action photo galleries from various sources across the Web.

Every two weeks I will upload two new police and fire photo galleries. Photos galleries are from those taken by myself (freelance news photog), and in the coming months, other police and fire photo sites, news media photogs, firefighters, police officers, and visitors like you!

The site will also include an archive for previously uploaded photo galleries. Check it out now!

PoliceAndFireVideos.com

The second site, PoliceAndFireVideos.com, is a spin-off of the PoliceAndFirePhotos.com above. This site is where you will find, you guessed it, police & fire action videos! After all, who doesn't love watching a exciting police chase or firefighters saving lives or battling large fires.

Each week I will search out and review police and fire action videos from various sources across the web and upload four new police and firefighter action videos in one convenient place just for you! The site will also include an archive for previously uploaded videos.

Video clip sources will include YouTube, police and fire specialty videos sites, and in the coming weeks, News Videographers, firefighters, police officers, and even submissions from visitors like you! Check it out now!

In Closing

I'm more than positive you will enjoy both sites so be sure and let all your friends know! Like Police-Scanner.info, both sites are 100% FREE and are supported by ad commissions so please check out the ad sponsors as you may find a great deal on something you like!

That's all for now, till next time, stay safe.

Got a comment about this post? Share your thoughts in the comment section.

-Ruben Flores
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

If you enjoy reading my blog, buy me a beer. (Suggested: $3 a beer or $7.5 for a pitcher)

Two Medical Flights Crash Within 24 Hours

2010-07-23T12:31:00.000-07:00

For scanner hobbyist, they are know as; "Air-Ambulance", "Air-Squad", "AirMed", "Airlife", "LifeFlight", "Starflight", "MedEvac", "CareFlite" and others.

They are most often a signs that someone has suffered traumatic injuries and requires immediate transport to an area trauma center.

LACoFD's Copter 11 Air Squad

From Wikipedia: An air ambulance is an aircraft used for emergency medical assistance in situations where either a traditional ambulance cannot reach the scene easily or quickly enough, or the patient needs to be transported over a distance or terrain that makes air transportation the most practical transport.

There have been two medical transport flight crashes within 24-hours.

Medical Transort Helicopter Goes Down in OK

In the first crash, a medical helicopter on its way to pick up a patient crashed in a secluded field in central Oklahoma late Thursday, killing the pilot and a nurse and left a paramedic seriously injured. The helicopter was en route from Integris Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma City to a hospital about 90 miles away in Okeene when it went down about 8 p.m. near Kingfisher, OK.

Pilot Al Harrison and nurse Ryan Duke died in the crash, according to a Friday statement by EagleMed LLC, the Wichita, Kan.-based company that operates the A-Star 350 helicopter such as the one pictured here. Michael Eccard, a paramedic and the lone survivor, was about 50 yards from the crash site and, ironically, was air-lifted to a trauma center. He is listed in serious condition. (Read full story or Watch video of crash scene)

Medical Transport Plane Goes Down in MI

In the second crash early this morning, the U.S. Coast Guard is searching searching lake Michigan right now for four people who were riding on a medical transport plane, when it went down into the water near Ludington Michigan, at about 10am central time today.

A fifth person was rescued by a "good samaritan". The one person who was rescued is suffering from mild hypothermia.

This story is still developing. Read full story and updates.

Related Links of Interest

Wikipedia: History of Air Ambulance
Photos: "Air Squad"

3rd Chicago Police Officer Killed in 2 Months

2010-07-19T21:38:00.000-07:00

Having several family members and friends in law enforcement, it is always an uneasy feeling when I read about an officer killed in the line of duty.

Tragedy in the Windy City

More tragic news in the law enforcement community. This time in Chicago as another Chicago Police Officer is Killed, the 3rd officer killed in 2 Months.

Twenty-year Chicago police veteran Michael Bailey (EOW: Sunday, July 18, 2010) was shot and killed outside his home early Sunday morning, just one month before turning 63, the mandatory retirement age for Chicago police.

Officer Bailey had just returned home from a mayoral protection detail, and was still in uniform, when as many as three male subjects approached and attempted to rob him of his new vehicle, which he bought himself as an early retirement gift.

He identified himself and exchanged shots with the suspects, who all fled the scene and remain at large. Police say as many as three suspects opened fire on the officer during the altercation. Officer Bailey is survived by his wife, son and two daughters.

Chicago's Other Fallen Heroes

Officer Bailey is the third Chicago officer killed in the line of duty in the past two months. The other two officers are:

+ Police Officer Thor Soderberg, 43
EOW: Wednesday, July 7, 2010 - Cause of Death: Gunfire

Officer Soderberg was killed with his own weapon on July 7 outside a police building on the south side. Officer Soderberg was returning to his vehicle at the end of his shift when he struggled with a male subject who approached from behind and was able to gain control of his service weapon, fatally shooting him in the face, head and back.

The suspect was later seriously wounded in a shootout with police and has been charged with murder. Officer Soderberg is survived by his wife, four siblings and parents.

+ Police Officer Thomas Wortham IV, 30
EOW: Thursday, May 20, 2010 - Cause of Death: Gunfire

Officer Wortham was shot and killed on May 19 after identifying himself as a police officer when four subjects attempted to rob him while he was outside his parents' house. Officer Wortham drew his service weapon and fired at the suspects, but was fatally shot in the abdomen.

His father, a retired Chicago police sergeant, witnessed the shooting and exchanged shots with the suspects. One was killed, another was seriously wounded while the two remaining males fled in a vehicle. All three suspects have been charged with first-degree murder. Officer Wortham is survived by his sister and parents.

Chicago Police By the Numbers

There are 13, 400 Sworn Officers in the Department (as of 2008)
Since it's formation in 1855, there have bee 511 police officers killed in the line of duty.
The three most common causes of line of duty deaths are: Gunfire (374); Automobile/Motorcycle Accidents (38); Vehicular Assault/Struck by Vehicle (18).
1931 was the deadliest year for the Chicago Police Department with 16 officers killed in the line of duty.

Related Links of Interest

That's all for now, till next time, stay safe.

Got a comment about this post? Share your thoughts in the comments section.

-Ruben Flores
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

If you enjoy reading my blog, buy me a beer. (Suggested: $3 a beer or $7.5 for a pitcher)

Police Scanners and the Law

2010-07-15T23:22:00.000-07:00

It has been a long held belief that owning and using a police scanner is illegal.

The truth is that owning and using a scanner for use in your own home is legal, however, there are some things that are illegal to do with a scanner.

Scanner Monitoring Laws

Law regulating the use of radio scanners are enforced by the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) and spelled out in the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 (ECPA).

Below are some of the more important laws regulating usage:

It is illegal to listen in on cellular and cordless phone calls.
It is illegal to intercept encrypted or scrambled communications.
It is illegal for scanner manufacturers to sell or import radio scanners that are capable of receiving cellular phone frequencies. (Note: This rule does not apply to sales by individuals and radio scanners made before 1985).
It is illegal to modify radio scanners so that cellular phone frequencies can be received.
It is illegal to use information you hear for personal gain. A common example is where a taxi driver listens to a competitor's dispatch channel for fare pick-ups and then races over and picks-up the fares.
It is illegal to use information you hear to aid in the commission of a crime.
It is illegal to disclose information you hear to other persons.

A full text copy of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 can be found here.

In addition to Federal laws, local restrictions may apply and vary from state to state. For example, a few states require a permit or FCC amateur license for mobile scanner usage. See links below for more information on scanning laws for your area.

The Bottom Line

It may sound complicated, but don’t worry, if you are a law-abiding citizen and are not a convicted felon, there you should not have a problem using a scanner, even for mobile use.

As you may know, I never go anywhere without my scanner and I have been pulled over several times over the last twenty-something years and have never had a problem.

Most officers were amused by my scanner and one even asked where he could get one. (Got a related story? Share it in the comments section)

Scanning Law Resources

The following resources listed below contain further information where you can learn more about scanning laws that may apply in your state.

Scanning Reference: Laws, Rules, & Regulations - Link index to scanning law pages for various states.
Mobile Scanner & Radar Detector Laws in US - Great site! Lots of info here.
American Law Sources Online - Can’t find scanning law resources for your state? Try searching for it yourself at LawSource.com.

Got a comment about this post, share your thoughts about this post in the comments section. That's all for now, till next time, stay safe.

-Ruben Flores
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

If you enjoy reading my blog posts, buy me a beer. (Suggested: $3 a beer or $7.5 for a pitcher)

Deadly Month for California Highway Patrol

2010-07-07T15:04:00.000-07:00

Five California Highway Patrol Officers were killed in the line of duty in less than two months in separate fatal accidents.

Four officers were killed in the month of June alone, two of those were struck and killed on the same day miles apart while standing along roadsides.

This is yet another grim reminder of the dangers that law enforcement officers face everyday on the job.

California Highway Patrol Fallen Heroes:
(Click on an officer's name to view their Officer Down Memorial Page)

+ CHP Officer Brett Oswald - San Luis Obispo, CA
EOW: June 27, 2010 - Officer Brett Oswald was killed when he was struck by a vehicle at the scene of an abandoned vehicle. The suspect was arrested and charged with felony vehicular manslaughter and driving with a suspended license. Officer Oswald is survived by his wife.

+ CHP Officer Justin McGrory - Barstow, CA
EOW: Sunday, June 27, 2010 - Officer Justin McGrory was struck and killed by a drunk driver while conducting a field sobriety test on I-15 in Barstow at 3:38 am. The suspect was arrested and charged with felony vehicular manslaughter. Officer McGrory is survived by his expectant wife and three small children.

+ CHP Officer Philip Ortiz - West Los Angeles, CA
EOW: Tuesday, June 22, 2010 - Officer Philip Ortiz succumbed to injuries sustained two weeks earlier when he was struck by a vehicle on I-405 in West Los Angeles while issuing a traffic citation to a driver. Office Ortiz is survived by his wife.

+ CHP Officer Thomas Philip Coleman - Redlands, CA
EOW: Friday, June 11, 2010 - Officer Thomas Coleman was killed in a motorcycle accident when his motorcycle collided with a semitrailer while pursuing a traffic violator he was attempting to stop in Redlands. The suspect was arrested and charged with felony vehicular manslaughter. Officer Coleman is survived by his wife, 2-year-old son, 8-month-old daughter.

+ CHP Pilot Officer Danny Benavides - Brawley, CA
EOW: Friday, May 7, 2010 - Officer Daniel Benavides was killed in a plane crash while patroling in Imperial County. He is survived by his wife and their 9 year old daughter.

CHP Line Of Duty Deaths by the Numbers

Since its formation in 1929, 224 CHP Officers have been killed in the line of duty (as of July 7, 2010).
The three most common causes of line of duty deaths to date are: Automobile/Motorcycle Accidents (94); Vehicular Assault/Struck by Vehicle (47); and Gunfire (44).
1964 was the deadliest year for the CHP with 8 officers dying in the line of duty.

Related Links of Interest

That's all for now, till next time, stay safe.

-Ruben Flores
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

If you enjoy reading my blog posts, buy me a beer. (Suggested: $3 a beer or $7.5 for a pitcher)

Dynamic Memory Architecture (DMA)

2010-05-25T01:45:00.000-07:00

Dynamic Memory Architecture or “DMA”

Newer scanner model from Uniden (the SC230, BC246T, BR330T, BCD396T, BCT15 and the BCD996T) incorporate a new memory technology known as Dynamic Memory Architecture, or DMA.

DMA allows for more efficient and flexible use of scanner memory by not imposing fixed sizes for banks or scanlists. This type of memory architecture uses memory spaces more efficiently and eliminates unused memory channels or spaces.

Instead of being organized into separate banks and channels, the scanner’s memory is contained in a pool. You simply use as much memory as you need in the pool to store as many frequencies, talk group ID’s, and alpha tags as you need.

The radio can be configured to have multiple “Systems” containing multiple “Groups”. A Group can contain conventional frequencies or Talkgroup IDs in a trunked system. The size of a System and the Groups within it are only limited by the amount of available memory in the radio.

DMA Memory requires that frequencies be programmed in a "System > Sub-System" hierarchy. Conventional Systems contain only Groups of frequencies. Trunked systems contain one Group of frequencies and multiple Groups of Talkgroup IDs arranged in any logical order you want.

A site is group of frequencies, or channels, used by a particular geographic location in a Trunk system. A Trunk system can have many sites, each containing a set of frequencies associated with that geographic site location.

That's it for now, till next time stay safe and don't forget to subscribe to my blog.

- RF
Your Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

Radio Shack PRO-107 iSCAN Radio Scanner

2010-02-14T23:59:00.000-08:00

RadioShack has just released its all new PRO-107 iSCAN radio. The PRO-107 iSCAN radio is the first of its type to have the look and feel of an mp3 player or even the Apple iPhone.

iSCAN combines the simplicity and ease-of-use of a portable media player with the power and sophistication of a state-of-the-art radio scanning receiver.

DISCLAIMER: Now, I have not had the oportunity to try the iSCAN radio as I already have a trunking two trunking scanners for use, but I did read the iSCAN manual (although, I am gonna save up to try it).

No Programming Neccessary!

I can already tell what the best feature the PRO-107 iSCAN radio sports. That would be that all frequencies are already programmed into the iSCAN! The entire USA database from RadioReference is stored in on a standard SD card that is included with iSCAN!

This means no more programming! What could be more easier than that! You simply select from a list your state, county and city and of course you can choose multiple cities/regions to monitor. You can then add your selections to any one of 20 customized playlist.

The iSCAN radio runs on two AA batteries and has a simplified keypad and display with familiar play, pause, and navigation controls, similar to an mp3 player (check out the manual for a peek).

Bottom line: The iSCAN radio is small enough to fit in a shirt pocket and seems to be an outstanding choice for novices and those who don't wish to "play" with the scanner, but rather just listen.

Check out some of these features:

Triple Trunking Handheld Scanner
Motorola Analog, EDACS, LTR Trunking
MP3 Player Style Controls
SAME (FIPS) / Weather alert
Skywarn
Spectrum Sweeper
Backlit Keypad and Display
PC Interface
And MUCH MUCH MORE! (Too many to list here! See our trusted partner, Scannermaster, for a complete list of features and reviews!)

Frequency Coverage:

VHF Low: 25.0000 - 54.0000 MHz
VHF Aircraft: 108.0000 - 136.9916 MHz
VHF High: 137.0000 - 174.0000 MHz
VHF High: 216.0025 - 222.2500 MHz
VHF High: 225.0025 - 405.9550 MHz
UHF Low/T: 406.0000 - 512.0000
UHF High: 806.0000 - 960.0000 MHz (excluding cellular)
UHF High: 1240.0000 - 1300.000 MHz

Box Includes:

RS PRO-107 iSCAN Radio Scanner
Rubber Antenna
USB Cable
SD Memory Card
CD-ROM
User Manual

Get it now at our Trusted Partner

Scannermaster for Only $229.95!

If you have a review or comment on the Radio Shack PRO-107 iSCAN, share it with other scannerheads in the comment section!

That's it for now, till next time stay safe and don't forget to subscribe to my blog.

- RF
Your Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

National Weather Service (NWS) 24-Hour Weather Broadcast

2010-02-03T05:12:00.000-08:00

For those of you who do not know about NOAA's 24-hour automated weather broadcasts, I thought I would cover it in this post.

The National Weather Service (NWS) continually broadcasts updated weather conditions, warnings, advisories, and forecasts 24-hours a day nationwide from the NOAA (National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration) data center.

NOAA WEATHER BROADCAST RADIO IS THE BEST MEANS TO RECEIVE WARNINGS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. These broadcasts can be received by NOAA Weather Radios sold in many departments stores and by most police radio scanners.

Nationwide NWS Broadcast Station Frequencies

One or more of the following NWS channels can be heard in most areas of the U.S. Most scanners come with these channels pre-programmed and accessed by a one-touch button labeled "WX".

If you have an older model scanner or your scanner does not have a one-touch weather button, simply program these frequencies into your scanner to find the one for your area. Or, if your scanner has a search feature, search between 162.400 and 162.550.

Channel - Frequency

Ch.1 - 162.550
Ch.2 - 162.400
Ch.3 - 162.475
Ch.4 - 162.425
Ch.5 - 162.450
Ch.6 - 162.500
Ch.7 - 162.525

You can also find the location and frequency of your nearest NOAA Weather Radio transmitter by using the index located on the following page:

National Weather Service - Radio Transmitter Stations http://www.nws.noaa.gov/nwr/nwrbro.htm#nwrstations

Scanning Severe Weather Conditions

IF YOU HAVE A SCANNER, MONITOR THE WEATHER FREQUENCIES LISTED ABOVE FOR THE LATEST WEATHER ADVISORIES AND CURRENT CONDITIONS AS WELL AS YOUR LOCAL POLICE & FIRE FREQUENCIES!

IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A SCANNER, MONITOR YOUR LOCAL TV OR NEWS RADIO FOR THE LATEST NEWS AND/OR ADVISORIES! MAKE SURE you stock extra batteries for your scanner or portable radio.

Weather Links & Resources

National Weather Service (NWS)
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
http://www.noaa.gov/

NOAA National Hurricane Center
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/

National Skywarn - Severe Weather
http://www.skywarn.net/

US Doppler Radar Sites
http://weather.noaa.gov/radar/national.html

Intellicast Weather
http://www.intellicast.com/

The Weather Channel
http://www.weather.com/

AccuWeather.com
http://www.accuweather.com/

NOAA Significant Event Imagery
http://www.osei.noaa.gov/OSEIiod.html

Hurricane Preparedness
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/HAW2/english/intro.shtml

That's it for now. Till next time, stay safe! As always, if you have a comment or addition to this post, please feel free to share it with others in the comment section and please subscribe to this blog.

-RF
Your Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

Economic Downturn Shutting Down Police

2010-01-27T00:24:00.000-08:00

Your local police department may be dramatically downsized or going away altogether as entire police forces across the U.S. are being shut down and disbanded because cities do not have the money to pay police officers.

In order to cut city budget costs, cities are turning to already stretched-thin local county sheriff departments to take over law enforcement duties.

These two quotes from one of the article below says it all:

"If you called the Gaston Police Department Wednesday you heard a strange message. "Yeah, this is Chief Crider Gaston Police Department. Do not leave any messages. As of right now council has disbanded the police department. We are laid off until further notice. Do not leave a message. They won't be checked for the next couple of weeks. Thank you, it's been fun working here. Bye."

and...

"Carry a gun. Protect your life," says a former Gaston police officer, who's warning residents they're going to have to fend for themselves.

Kinda scarry huh? Below are just some of the news articles I came across that paint a grim picture of possible things to come:

Hoschton (GA) Dissolves Police Department

Cleveland (OH) Police Cuts Sixty-Seven Officers

Minneapolis (MN) Police Shuts Down Narcotics Unit

Boston (MA) Police Could Lay Off 200

Tulsa (OK) Police Officers Laid Off

Roanoke (IL) Police Department Disbanded

Waukesha County (WI) Sheriff Takes Over in Pewaukee

Kilbuck (PA) Police Department Disbanded

Gaston (SC) Police Department Disbanded

Mora City (MN) Council Votes to Disband Police Department

Waukegan (IL) Cuts Include Disbanding Horse Patrol

Highwood City (IL) Suburb May Shutter Local Police Force

Lewisville (TX) Police Motorcycle Patrol Dissolved

Lacey (WA) Police Unit Disbanding Decried

Mandeville (LA) Takeover of Police Dept. Discussed by Mayor, Sheriff

Stillwater (NJ) Disbands Police Department

Paint Borough (PA) Dropping Part-Time Police Department

That's it for now, till next post, stay safe and please subscribe! As always, if you have a comment about this post, share it with others by clicking on the comment link below.

-Ruben Flores
Your Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info
(Email: ruben "at" police-scanner.info)

GRE PSR300 Triple Trunking Handheld Scanner

2010-01-20T19:47:00.000-08:00

I just received a second PSR300 trunking scanner to program for another customer and thought I would feature it here as I really like this model. The GRE PSR300 handheld scanner was introduced by GRE late 2007 as an analog trunking counterpart to the digital trunking PSR500 scanner.

The PSR300 is a handheld scanner that directly competes with Uniden’s BC346XT. While the PSR300 is about $70 cheaper than the Uniden ($150 for the GRE vs. $220 for the Uniden) it has fewer advanced features and less memory.

The PSR300 has 1000 channels and 1500 talkgroups, split evenly among the 10 banks. The GRE’s main difference is that it uses the older fixed banks and channel programming method instead of the newer Dynamic Memory Architecture (DMA) methods used by the Unidens and digital GRE’s.

Check out some of these features:

Triple Trunking Handheld Scanner
Motorola Analog, EDACS, LTR
1,000 CH / 1,500 TGID
CTCSS / DCS
20dB attenuator
SAME (FIPS) / Weather alert
Skywarn
Spectrum Sweeper
4x16 Alphanumeric Display
Signal strength meter
Backlit Keypad and Display
PC Programmable
Field Upgradeable Firmware
And MUCH MUCH MORE! (Too many to list here! See our trusted partner, Scannermaster, for a complete list of features and a 3D view!)

Frequency Coverage:

VHF Low: 25.0000 - 54.0000 MHz
VHF Aircraft: 108.0000 - 136.9916 MHz
VHF High: 137.0000 - 174.0000 MHz
VHF High: 216.0025 - 299.9375 MHz
UHF Low/T: 300.0000 - 512.0000 MHz
UHF High: 764.0000 - 960.0000 MHz
UHF High: 1240.0000 - 1300.000 MHz
Except cellular band: 824-848.9875 MHz and 869- 893.9875 MHz
Step: 3.125, 5, 6.25, 7.5, 8.33, 10, 12.5, 25 kHz

Box Includes:

PSR-300 Scanner
AC Adapter
Rubber Antenna
Standard Batter Holder
Rechargeable Battery Holder
User Manual

Get it now at our Trusted Partner

Scannermaster for Only $149.95!

If you have a review or comment on the PSR300, share it with other scannerheads in the comment section! Also, if you are interested in having your scanner programmed, send me an email for a quote.

That's it for now, till next time stay safe and don't forget to subscribe to my blog.

- RF
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

LA County Fire USAR Team Enroute to Haiti

2010-01-14T01:55:00.000-08:00

United States Urban Search and Rescue teams, Virginia Task Force 1 ("VA-TF1") and California Task Force 2 ("CA-TF2"), were activated on Tuesday evening and mobilized on Wednesday to travel to Haiti in the aftermath of a magnitude-7.0 earthquake that devastated the nation's capital. Hundreds of thousands of people are feared trapped or dead following the earthquake Tuesday.

Ready for Disaster!

Both VA-TF1 and CA-TF2 are specially-trained and equipped 72-person Urban Search and Rescue Task Forces consisting of Los Angeles County (CA) and Fairfax County (VA) Fire Department firefighters and paramedics rescue specialists, emergency room physicians, structural engineers, heavy equipment specialists, canine search dogs and handlers, hazardous materials technicians, communications specialists, and logistics specialists.

A Witness to Deployment

California Task Force 2 (CA-TF2) deployed from March Air Base in Riverside County just before 10:30PM PT last night on their 8-hour flight (See video). March Air Base is 14 miles north of Canyon Lake, CA where I live. I was watching the take-off live on KCAL-9 News and went outside to watch as the massive C-17 flew low right overhead of my home accending on it's journey to devastation.

I have personally seen the LA County Fire USAR team in action after the magnitude-6.7 Northridge earthquake in 1994 (Jan. 17) while I was a photographer for LA County Fire and all I can say is these guys are "fearless badasses", the best of the best heading into the worst of the worst!

As I watched the plane fly overhead, all I could do give a salute and wish them goodluck and godspeed...

* Photos above are provided courtesy of the L.A. County Fire Dept.

USAID Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance

VA-TF1 & CA-TF2 are partnered in providing the U.S. Agency for International Development’s ("USAID") Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance with humanitarian assistance in the form of collapsed structure search and rescue, in response to natural and man-made disasters, throughout the world.

Both task forces have also deployed nationally to the Oklahoma City Bombing, The Pentagon, Hurricanes Katrina and Isabel as well as international deplyments to the bombing in Kenya, earthquakes in Turkey, Taiwan, and Iran.

Help Needed! How You Can Help

Donations to the American Red Cross for Haiti relief can be made in the following ways:

1. Make an unrestricted donation to the International Response Fund at www.redcross.org by clicking on the Donate Now button.

2. Call in a donation to the Red Cross at 1-800-REDCROSS or for Spanish call 1-800-257-7575.

3. By texting "Haiti" to 90999 to send a $10 donation to the Red Cross, through an effort backed by the U.S. State Department (http://www.state.gov/). Your donation will be automatically billed to your cell phone.

Or, visit the site below to learn more about ongoing disaster relief in Haiti:

+ InterAction - List of Agencies Accepting Donations

And Finally...

Family members trying to locate U.S. citizens living or traveling in Haiti should contact the U.S. Department of State, Office of Overseas Citizens Services, at 1-888-407-4747 or (202) 647-5225.

Related Links of Interest

+ L.A. Rescurers Deploy to Haiti Quake Zone

+ California Task Force 2 International Urban Search & Rescue

+ Virgina Task Force 1 International Urban Search & Rescue

+ L.A. Search-Rescue Team Demonstrates Response

+ CNN News Coverage

+ Preparing for a Major Earthquake or Disaster

+ Police Scanners & Emergency Preparedness

That all for now, let's hope for the best for Haiti's survivors...

-RF
Your Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info!

Police-Scanner.info's Family Watchdog Portal

2010-01-02T23:54:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone and Happy New Year! I hope you are all off to a good start in 2010! This year is going to be an exciting year for Police-Scanner.info and this blog with a wealth of information to come.

That said, I am proud to announce that Police-Scanner.info has teamed up with Family Watchdog, LLC to provide our visitors with the "PSI Family Watchdog Portal!" The portal allows you to search and see where registered sex offenders live and work around you and can notify you when a registered sex offender moves within five miles of a given address.

Other information available includes an offender count list that contains the actual number of offenders that are publicly viewable in each official state registry, current information on FDA food and drug recalls, and information on hazardous product recalls. Visit the PSI Family Watchdog Portal today:

PSI Family Watchdog Portal

That's it for now, stay safe and happy scanning!

-RF
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

Santa BOLO Crime Broadcast Alert

2009-12-23T17:59:00.000-08:00

Every year on Christmas Eve, thousands of police and fire agencies across America join in on a long-standing tradition - the annual Santa BOLO ("Be On the Look Out") Crime Broadcast Alert for Santa and his reindeer.

The BOLO crime broadcast is put out over dispatch channels alerting all field units be on the look out for a "suspicous suspect" (Santa) and his "eight" accomplices reported to be possible burglery suspects.

The broadcasts usually take place just before or after midnight and last around a minute. In addition, the contents of the broadcast vary from agency to agency and not all agencies partake in the fun.

So, keep your ears open and you just might hear a Santa Bolo Crime Broadcast near you!

Below are a few samples from years past:

Los Angeles Sheriff's Department Santa Alert
(1min, 96K) - This is the LA County Sheriff department's countywide version.

Orange County Sheriff's Department Santa Alert
(2min:29sec, 2.3MB) - This is the Orange County, CA Sheriff department's countywide version.

Orange County Fire Department's Santa Alert
(1min:03sec, 996K) - This is the Orange County, CA Fire department's agency wide version.

That's it for now, this is the last post of the year. Till next time, stay safe, happy scanning and I wish you all a MERRY CHRISTMAS AND/OR HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

-RF
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

Remembering Police Officers & Firefighters Killed in the Line of Duty

2009-12-17T10:35:00.000-08:00

The dictionary defines "hero" as one having exceptional courage and fortitude.

This definition has never been more true for the men and woman who put their lives on the line everyday to maintain law and order and keep us from harm's way.

They are police officers, sheriff deputies, firefighters, and paramedics that are the first to respond to the scene of an emergency disaster or other dangerous situation. These men and woman are know as "first responders".

"Without their courage and bravery, CHAOS would surely reign" -RF

Rememering Fallen Heroes

As the Christmas Holiday draws near and the year 2009 comes to an end, I would like everyone to pause and take the time to remember the 117 Police Officers and 87 Firefighters killed (as of 12/16/09) in the U.S. in line of duty in 2009 - the ultimate sacrifice!

Sadly and unfortunately, the numbers above will likely rise as there are still fifteen days left till year's end. At the bottom of this post you will find links to Police Officer and Firefighter Memorials. If you have the time, visit the memorials and read some of the entries.

I am sure you will be deeply moved as I always am by the countless stories of selfless courage and heroism exhibited by police officers and firefighters who lost their lives while serving and protecting the citizens of this great nation in 2009 and years past.

Also, there are also links to donate to police officer and firefighter memorial funds. All donations go towards helping families of officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty get through the difficult times of their loss.

Line of Duty Deaths By the Numbers

Here are some somber statistics on Police Officer Line of Duty Deaths (LODD) in 2009 from the Officer Down Memorial Page. (as of 12/16/09)

+ Top-3 Line of Duty Death by Cause:

46 - by Gunfire
33 - by Automobile Accident
9 - by Vehicular Assault

+ Top-3 Line of Duty Deaths by Month:

14 - in April
13 - in October
10 - in January, May, June, & July

+ Top-3 Line of Duty Deaths by State:

11 - in Texas
8 - in California
8 - in Florida

+ More By the Numbers:

37 - Number of Average Age
9yr.,11mo. - Number of Average Tour of Duty Years
1 - Number of Female Officers Killed in the Line of Duty

RELATED LINKS OF INTEREST

Officer Down Memorial Page

US Fire Administration Firefighter Fatalities

Latest Headlines: Officer Down - Fallen Firefighter

National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund

National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Fund

Police-Scanner.info's First Responder Tribute Page

That's it for now, till next time stay safe and thank a police officer or firefighter for their service next time you see one, they will appreciate it!

-RF
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

Four Lakewood, WA Police Officers Killed in Ambush

2009-11-29T16:13:00.000-08:00

A tragic day in the law enfocement community. Sad news to report out of Pierce County, WA.

Four Lakewood Police Officers, three male and a female, have been killed in an ambush execution early this morning at a coffee shop in Pierce County.

From the Seattle Post Intellegence:

"Four uniformed police officers were shot and killed in Pierce County Sunday morning in a coffee shop as they worked on their laptop computers, authorities said.

Investigators believe the officers were targeted, and it was not a robbery. A suspect remained at large."

Read the full story and view press conference video and photos at Seattle Post Intellegence:

Four Officers Killed in Pierce County

My thoughts and prayer go out to the families and friends of the fallen officers as well as to the entire law enforcement community.

-RF

UPDATE (11/30/09, 5:25AM PT): The suspect, apparently shot and wounded during the ambush, has been tracked to a Seattle home and is currently in a barricaded standoff with police. Also, the four fallen officers have been added to the Officer Down Memorial Page. -RF

UPDATE (11/30/09, 9:11PM PT): The suspect wanted in connection with the shooting eluded police this morning. Police surrounded a second home is Seattle this evening, however, the manuhunt continues as the suspect was not found. Several relatives believed to have helped the suspect elude police have been arrested. Read full story... -RF

REWARD INFORMATION

There is a warrant and $125,000 REWARD for information leading to the arrest of Maurice Clemmons, the suspect in the Lakewood police officer shooting. The warrant is for four counts of first degree murder. He has a gunshot wound and knows there is an ongoing law enforcement manhunt and should be considered armed and dangerous.

The Pierce County Sheriff's Department has jurisdiction and is continuing their investigation into the shooting deaths of the four officers and anyone with information on the crime is urged to call 866-977-2362. The reward money was put up by the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigations), ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms) and Crime Stoppers. -RF

FINAL UPDATE (12/01/09, 4:52AM PT): Maurice Clemmons, the suspect wanted in connection with the deadly shooting of four Lakewood, WA Police Officers, has been shot and killed by police in a confrontation around 2:30AM PT ending a near 48-hour massive manhunt. Read full story... -RF

Uniden BCD996XT Digital Police Scanner

2009-11-24T04:07:00.000-08:00

The new Uniden BCD996XT Mobile/Base Police Scanner, released in July 2009, may look the same as its similarly named predecessor, the BCD996T, but inside it's a whole lot different!

This new Uniden Police Scanner significantly raises the bar with much improved APCO-25 digital decoding as well as a host of new features and more memory.

Just look at all these features!

TrunkTracker IV (Motorola APCO 25 Digital, Motorola, EDACS, LTR)
25000 Dynamically Allocated Channels
Close Call RF Capture Technology - Instantly tunes to signals from nearby transmitters!
Location-Based GPS Scanning
Fire Tone-Out
Multi-Colored Display Backlight
Alpha Tagging
100 Quick Key System Access
Band Scope - Graphically finds radio activity
Audio AGC
Automatic Digital Threshold Adjustment
NAC Decoding - for conventional P25 channels
DCS/CTCSS Rapid Decode - instantly detects and displays the sub-audible tone so you can quickly determine the system settings.
S.A.M.E. Weather Alert - Specific Area Message Encoding - During a NOAA Weather or Emergency Alert, a code for your specific location will alert you to severe conditions in your immediate area!
PC Programming/Control
System / Channel Number Tagging - provides rapid access to a specific system or channel
Compatible with BC-RH96 Remote Head
Individual Channel Volume Offset
Priority ID Scan on trunked systems
too many to list here!

Frequency Coverage:

25.0000 - 512.0000 MHz
763.0000 - 775.9875 MHz
793.0000 - 823.9875 MHz
849.0125 - 868.9875 MHz
894.0125 - 960.0000 MHz
1240.0000 - 1300.0000 MHz

Box Included: Scanner, AC Adapter , Vehicle Accessory Power Cord , Three-Wire Harness , Mounting Bracket and Hardware , Antenna , Serial Programming Cable , O/M on CD ROM, Other Printed Materials and Mounting Sleeve and keys.

On Sale Now at: Scannermaster

That's it for now, till next time stay safe! Have a Happy Thanksgiving! Please Subscribe and don't forget to leave a review or comment on this post!

Well, that's it for now - enjoy! Please subscribe to my blog and let me know what you think about this post in the comments. Till next time...stay safe and happy scanning!

- RF
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

Belmont (CA) Fire Truck 13 Tiller Ride

2009-11-12T01:25:00.000-08:00

A Tiller-Truck, also known as a tractor drawn aerial or a hook-and-ladder truck (pictured below), is a specialized turntable ladder mounted on a semi-trailer truck with separate steering wheels and drivers for the front and rear wheels.

Click photo for Hi-Rez image

(Los Angeles City Fire Tiller Truck 27 - Photo by Matthew Field)

Now you can experience an awesome virtual ride along with Belmont (CA) Fire Department Tiller Truck 13's "Tillercam" as they respond to an injury vehicle accident.

From the point of view of the rear engine driver where the cam is mounted, Tillercam takes you on a near 7-minute ride from dispatch to arrival on scene. What makes it just that more exciting is the comms between the front and rear drivers that us scannerheads would never hear over the air - really cool stuff!

SCFA-Belmont Fire Truck 13 Tiller Ride
(6min:49sec - will auto-launch in WMPlayer)

On a Side Note: While we are on the subject of Tiller Trucks, check out this news article (complete with videos and photos) that I came across involving a Tiller Truck rollover in August of this year in Raleigh, NC - WHOA!!:

ABC News: New Video Shows Fire Truck Crash

Well, that's it for now - enjoy! Please subscribe to my blog and let me know what you think about this post in the comments. Till next time...stay safe and happy scanning!

- RF
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

Mass Shooting in Orlando, Florida High Rise

2009-11-06T10:30:00.000-08:00

A day after the worst mass shooting on a U.S. military base in U.S. history, eight people have been reportedly shot in an Orlando, FL high rise! The gunmen is still on the loose and a manhunt in currently underway. Occurred around 11:30ET.

Orlando, FL Live Scanner Feed

CNN Full Coverage

- RF
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

Police Scanners in the News 1

2009-10-21T16:37:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the first installment of "Police Scanners in the News". Under this category is were I will post news articles I find involving police scanners. Let's get started:

The following article exposes a trend that is occuring in cities all across America:

Scanner Listeners' Pastime Silenced by the Conversion

And it's morons like these that give law-abiding citizens like us a bad name...:

Anarchist Arrested After Tweeting Out the Fuzz to Protesters
Man found using a police scanner and Twitter to help numerous protesters avoid police during the Group of 20 summit and has now been charged with hindering apprehension or prosecution, criminal use of a communication facility, and possession of instruments of crime.

Suspect Faces Additional Charges
A 20-year-old man already accused of breaking into an Austin home Sept. 30 while a family of six was sleeping now is facing more felony cases for alleged burglaries about the same time. According to the new complaints, police went to the home of Hanson's girlfriend after arresting Hanson. She told police that Hanson used the police scanner when he went out.

Search Warrant Results in Arrest of Drug Suspect on Another Charge

...and it's moronic actions like the above that give rise to law enforcement taking actions like this:

Sheriff Requests Ordinance to Outlaw Mobile Scanners
Calling Linn County "scanner land" and explaining to the commissioners that it is becoming increasingly difficult to make surprise busts, Sheriff Barry Walker asked the commissioners to approve an ordinance to outlaw mobile scanners in vehicles.

Well, that's for this post - enjoy. Please subscribe to my blog and let me know what you think about this post. Till next time...stay safe and happy scanning!

- RF
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

Reminder of Why We Have Earthquake Drills

2009-10-16T04:37:00.000-07:00

So, one day after the largest earthquake drill in California history, I get a reminder of why we have earthquake drills. I was sitting here just after 3:00AM Pacific Time writing the next entry for this blog when I was startled by a loud rumbling that sounded like someone had opened the sliding door in my living room. I grab my gun and went to investigate with nothing to be found.

Moments later, my sister Marlene, who lives close by and was up working, IM's me "did you feel it?". "Was that what that was, I thought someone was breaking in" I told her. Then I go to the "Recent Earthquakes in California and Nevada" information page and there it was a M3.5 earthquake. I am only 24 miles Southeast from the epicenter and it seems to have been felt in a wide area for a minor quake, however, there was no mention of it over police and fire channels.
Just hope it wasn't a foreshock! :-O

If you live in earthquake country, then the following audio files are samples of what you may hear over your local fire department frequencies after an earthquake has occurred:

LACOFD Earthquake Alert (:29sec, 58K)
Anytime a moderate to major earthquake strikes, the Los Angeles County Fire department puts out a countywide broadcast alerting all stations that an earthquake has occurred in the region.

LACOFD Earthquake Intensity Report (5min:17sec, 627K)
Anytime a moderate to major earthquake strikes, the Los Angeles County Fire department puts out a countywide broadcast alerting all stations that an earthquake has occurred in the area. Following an alert, an "intensity report" is taken from Battalion Chief in the field from across the county advising how strong the earthquake was felt and any damage in that particular area.

In closing, for many scanner enthusiasts like myself, a police scanner is one of the most valuable tools we can have nearby when disaster strikes! Why? Because critical and timely information is key in the aftermath of any major emergency, disaster, or other "large-scale" event.

From personal experience, the only sure way to get timely up-to-date and critical information after a disaster is by monitoring a police scanner. Television and radio broadcast information is not a viable option as information via those sources is often delayed, sketchy, or unconfirmed at best. So have your scanner close by as it will come in handy when disaster strikes!

Well, that's for this post - enjoy. Please subscribe to my blog and let me know what you think about this post. Till next time...stay safe and happy scanning!

- RF
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

Preparing for a Major Earthquake/Disaster

2009-10-12T04:08:00.000-07:00

Earthquakes can strike anywhere at anytime without warning. In fact, thousands of earthquakes occur everyday in the US alone with most too small to even be noticed. The real danger lies in the number of strong, or even worse, major quakes that strike periodically. These quakes have the potential to cause severe widespread damage, death and serious injury if they strike near populated areas.

Having personally experienced every major shaker to hit Southern California starting with the 6.6M San Fernando Quake (Feb. 1969), I can attest to the awesome force of "intense" ground shaking generated by a 6.0+ or 7.0+ magnitude earthquake. There is just something about watching every single thing around you shaking all at once in different directions that is, well let's just say, unforgettable.

On Thursday morning at 10:15AM Pacific Time, California will be hit with a magnitude 7.8 earthquake along the southern San Andreas fault causing widespread damage and destruction.

Am I psychic? Not even close! It's the second annual Great California ShakeOut. The Great California ShakeOut is a statewide earthquake drill spanning all 58 California counties, grouped into 11 regional areas. The purpose of the ShakeOut is to help public safety agencies, people and organizations prepare for a major earthquake and practice how to protect ourselves when they happen.

Last year, I monitored the Los Angeles County Fire department communications on my scanner during the drill and was amazed as to the extent of the drill and simulated rescue operations occurring in real time - even one scenario involving a fire station collapse with firefighters trapped! Scary stuff.

Visit the official Great California ShakeOut Website to get instructions for Families, Individuals, Schools, Businesses, etc., on how to plan your drill, get prepared, and participate in the ShakeOut. Last year, nearly 5.5 million Southern Californians participated in the 2008 ShakeOut drill. This year over 6.4 million people are currently registered to participate in the 2009 ShakeOut Drill.

Check out these links for more information:

Great California ShakeOut Website

ShakeOut Scenario Mainshock M7.8 Intensity Shakemap

Southern California ShakeOut Ground Shake Animations

2008 ShakeOut Drill Broadcast - YouTube

USGS World Map of Current Earthquakes

Police Scanners & Emergency Preparedness Information

Best Online Police Video Websites

2009-10-06T03:15:00.000-07:00

Hello all! So, I was surfin' da web lookin' for some content ideas for this post and I can across some really cool sites that host police videos. Now, I gotta say, I LOVE WATCHING police videos as I'm sure you fellow "scannerheads" do! Especially pursuits, just like when I hear them live over the scanner.

One of my favorite TV shows of all time was "World's Wildest Police Videos" (see links below). If you love police videos too or are new to police videos, then you gonna love this post! I have searched long and hard just for you to bring you the best online police video websites! Okay, well maybe just searched and reviewed the sites...LOL!

Anyway, there are literally thousands of videos to check out. The videos featured on these sites come from submissions from site members and contain videos from police car dash cams, closed-circuit TV's, video cameras, etc. and include pursuits, crashes, DUI's (Driving Under the Influence), humor and much more. Many videos found on these sites contain unedited and graphic footage, things you would not see on free or paid TV so beware! The following some samples from FootyPD:

WARNING - THE FOLLOWING VIDEOS CONTAIN EXTREME GRAPHIC FOOTAGE!!

FootyPD Video: "MC vs. Vehicle"
Euro police pursuit of motorcycle ends with MC crashing head on into oncoming traffic.
Video Link: http://tinyurl.com/ydhno7r

FootyPD Video: "MC vs. Cellphone"
Driver on cellphone runs red light and hits guy on scooter at full speed.
Video Link: http://tinyurl.com/ya2dnjc

FootyPD Video: "Why Pat Down?"
Suspect in interrogation room pulls gun from waistband and shoots self.
Video Link: http://tinyurl.com/yd9kogt

BEST POLICE VIDEO WEBSITES LINKS

FootyPD Online Police Videos
http://www.footypd.com

PoliceOne P1 Online Videos
http://www.policeone.com/videos/

BLUTube Online Police Videos (powered by PoliceOne.com)
http://blutube.policeone.com/

YouTube: "Police Videos" (Search Results)
http://tinyurl.com/yc8zxgp

"World's Wildest Police Videos" (Google Search)
http://tinyurl.com/yar7qqf

Well, that's for this post - enjoy. Please subscribe to my blog and let me know what you think about this post. Till next time...stay safe and happy scanning!

-RF
Bloghost & Webmaster @ Police-Scanner.info

PSI Scanner Blog is Back!

2009-10-02T20:57:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! As mentioned on Police-Scanner.info, I am back after a a short hiatus and move to a new home. Speaking of a new home, this page is now the new home of Police-Scanner.info's Scanner Blog. I was not happy with the wordpress version my host was providing so I decided to go with Blogger.com. My old blog post can be found in the archives of the old blog here.

Anyway, I guess I will start fresh with a description of this blog. My name is Ruben Flores and I am the Webmaster at Police-Scanner.info. This blog is where I will regularly post

Scanner-Related Product Annoucements
Police Scanner Tips & Tricks
Scanner-Related Articles
Scanner-Related News
Other Police Scanner-related Information
Emergency Prepardness Topics & Links
Public Safety Topics & Links
Major Breaking News Events
and once in awhile, my own "Off-Topic" rants.

So stay tuned! I hope to update this page every few days, and at least once a week or as major breaking news/emergency events within the U.S. happen.

-RF