Cambridge - a city - pop 100,000 - 6 square miles
Cambridge - 8 stations - 154.355 + 800Mhz Trunked Radio System
Sta 1 - Harvard Square - E1 L1 R2 R1 Div2
Sta 2 - Central Square - E2 L3
Sta 3 - East - E3 L2
E3 - 1998 Pierce Saber 1250GPM / 500Gal / 50 Gal Foam Concentrate
L2
Sta 4 - Porter Square - E4
E4
Sta 5 - Inmann Square - E5 - C2 (Senior Deputy Chief) - called Div1 as of 01May01
E5
Sta 6 - River St - E6
E6
Sta 8 - Walden Square - E8 L4 - C3 (Junior Deputy Chief)
E8
L4
Sta 9 - Lexington St - E9
E9
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Response Levels
Outside Fire - 1E
Car Fire - 1E + 1L
Elevator Emergency - 1R + ?1L
Gas Leak Outside - 1E + 1L + 1R + 1C
Gas Leak Inside Building - ?3E + ?2L + ?1R
Chimney Fire - ?1E + ?1L
Power Lines Down - 1E + 1L
Interior Alarm System - 1E
Interior Alarm System - 1E + 1L (?if first due L avail)
Building Fire - 3E + 2L + 1R + C
Street Box - ?2E + ?1L + ?1C
Line Box - 1 Mutual Aid E in addition to the Building Fire or Street Box assignment (Arthur D Little may get a Belmont E plus an Arlington E on the line box)
Working Fire - 1E + 2nd C - ?January 2001 - changed to 1E + 1L + 2nd Chief Officer
2nd Alarm - 3E + 1L (minus 1E if worker struck previous to 2nd alarm) - mutual aid companies to Cambridge stations
3rd Alarm - 3E (plus more mutual aid engines into Cambridge stations)
Basic Ambulance Call - 1E + 1R
Serious Ambulance Call - 1E + 1R + 1 Private ALS unit (Dec 2001 - in the Harvard Sq area - just 1R + Pro ALS is sent on a ALS call - Pro ALS does the transport)
Motor Vehicle Crash with entrappment - 1E + 1L + 1 or 2 R + Pro ALS + C
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Minimum manning in Cambridge is 1 Officer & 2 firefighters on every company. Every Engine is "assigned" 1 & 4, Trucks 1 & 3 and Rescue 2 & 5. If any company goes below 3 members, someone from another company is detailed to the station that needs help. C2 & C3 each have a driver plus the chief.
May 2001 info - residential streets in most of Cambridge are very narrow and often allow just one way traffic - parking is allowed on both sides of the street leaving just lane for traffic to flow. SCBA are not usually kept in the seats - they are usually kept in storage compartments on the vehicles.
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Dispatch Operations
The police and fire dispatch centers were merged in 1998 into the former fire alarm building next to FD HQ. See the City website for more info.
Also see this site for Summer 2000 photos of the 911 Comm Center
Fire stations are alerted to calls either via vocalarms or telephones (in any case - the stations are not primarily dispatched via radio - they are primarily dispatched via landlines) - some companies now have wireless MDTs in their rigs - Dec 2001
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Ambulance Operations
R1 and R2 are BLS ambulances staffed by firefighter/EMTs. The Cambridge based Proffessional Ambulance Company (a private for profit business) provides 1 or 2 ALS transport units to the city at all times. They also have a contract to provide BLS and ALS service to all Harvard University buildings. Massachusetts Institute of Technology Police operate a BLS ambulance on the MIT campus.
If R1 and R2 are not available, a Proffessional BLS unit will respond with Cambridge FD units. The private Cataldo Ambulance Service of Somerville provides backup ALS and BLS units if Proffessional units are not available. Serious trauma patients are transported to hospitals in Boston.
1Sept00 - Some firefighters are being trained as paramedics at this time. See www.nefnn.com for more info.
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High Hazard Areas - Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge City Hospital, Mount Auburn Hospital, Youville Rehab Hospital, Polaroid Factory, Nuclear Accelerator at MIT, Galleria Shopping Mall, Middlesex County Highrise Jail, Marriott Highrise Hotel, Regency Highrise Hotel, Kendall Square Highrise Hotels, Museum of Science
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Radio Operations
Initially, all radios are set/tuned to Channel 1. On fire calls, if units call off at a scene with fire or smoke showing, then the dispatcher will tell all responding units to switch to one of the fireground channels (Channel 16 primary fireground - Channel 14 is 2ndary fireground). Incidents in the Red Line subway stations go to Channel 14 on arrival at the scene. On EMS calls, units will call off at the scene on Channel 1, and then switch to Channel 5, until they switch back to Channel 1 and tell the dispatcher that they are clear.
Dec 2001 - as of now, the radio procedure seems to be a little different - the dispatchers will announce the fireground channel (usually either Ch16 then Ch14) as soon as the call is dispatched - however I dont think that anyone shifts their portable radios from Channel 1 to the FG channel until they reach the scene
On mutual aid calls, units switch to Channel 4 at some point. Channel 4 is patched to 154.22 which is the Metro Boston area fireground channel. Usually this works very poorly so units often switch to Channel 15 or Channel 13 when operating at incidents in other cities. (Channel 15 and Channel 13 are direct / non trunked / non repeaterized channels). [October 2000 - when operating at a 3rd alarm in West Somerville - C300 used Ch4 - C3 used Ch13 to converse with Cambridge companies operating at the fire]
All calls are announced on Channel 1. All transmitted boxes are beeped via Channel 1. Allout signals are also transmitted on Channel 1. Channel 1 is still patched to 154.355 and it is about 7 years since they went to 800T. There seems to be some linkage between the Fire Ground Channels ?14 and 16 and the 800T system. I believe that anytime that 2 units double on Channel ?14 or 16, that they are bounced over to the 800T system some how.
Cross streets are given for all calls. Nearest hydrant locations are NOT given for fire calls. A Class B telegraph system is used (in other words, street boxes and master boxes are not automatically transmitted to the stations - they must be retransmitted by the dispatchers at the fire dispatch center).
Radio Channels
Channels 1 thru 12 - trunked
Channel 13 - 852.2625 direct
Channel 14 - 852.2625R
Channel 15 - 854.4875 direct
Channel 16 - 854.4875R
(Channel 4 is patched to 154.22)
(Channel 1 is patched to 154.355)
I do not believe that the dispatchers can hear any units who transmit on Channel 13 nor Channel 15.
Info added 5/5/99
Portable Radio Callsigns
C200 - C2's aide
C300 - C2's aide
Engine 100 - officer's portable on Engine 1
Engine 101 - 2nd portable radio on Engine 1
Ladder 100 - officer's portable on Ladder 1
Ladder 101 - 2nd portable radio on Ladder 1
Rescue 100 - officer's portable on Rescue 1
Rescue 101 - 2nd portable radio on Rescue 1
Rescue 102 - ?3rd portable on Rescue 1
Info added 5/8/99
1Sept00 - Talk Group 000-13 is patched to 854.4875R. Talk Group 000-?6 is used to give patient info to Cambridge City Hospital's Emergency Room. Talk Group 000-?5 (Channel 5 on FD radios) is used by companies operating at a EMS call after the first arriving unit has called off at the scene on Channel 1.
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For more info please go to the Cambridge Fire Dept Website
Also check out the Code 11 Homepage which has lots of Cambridge FD info and photos.
Last, but not least, please visit Matt's Fire Buff Site
Also see www.massmetrofire.org
Miscellaneous Info - ISO has now proclaimed that Cambridge has a Class 1 Fire Department (which is the best ranking attainable under the insurance industries rating schedule). Also - a new Air Supply/ Confined Space rescue vehicle has been ordered - 8/99
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Written by Peter Szerlag - April 1999
Last Update - 5/13/99 - 8/19/99 - 1Sept00 - 25Oct 00 - 911 photos + misc minor info - 05May01 - misc info - Div 1 - narrow streets - SCBA - WF changed - 30Dec 2001 - misc changes - mDTS - R only to EMS with Pro - radio usage - ADL line box - etc