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

...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 you begin the project. Let them come and review your site. This might seem like an inconvenience, but time spent with the Power Company may help avoid a fatal accident. Play it safe. Never dig without contacting the utility companies.

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

#10 – ANTENNA GROUNDING: Outdoor antennas should be grounded with an approved lighting arresting device. Do not use hot water pipes or gas lines 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 the radio.

#11 – ANTENNA GUY WIRES: Guy wires are support wires that hold the mast up.  They are usually necessary when the mast exceeds 12 feet in length. Never use a utility pole as a support for an antenna or guy 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 for trespassing.

            

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

#13 – HELPING HAND: You will most likely require a second or even third pair of hands for the installation. Each person should have assigned tasks and know what to do when and in what order. A "boss" should be chosen to call out instructions and 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 protective gear and use an approved safety belt if you are climbing a mast or tower.

#15 – ANTENNA TOWERS: If your antenna installation includes putting up a tower read the additional advisory on towers that 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 people going walking by. DO NOT install wire antennas over or under utility lines. Watch out where your lead in or coax lines are running.

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

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

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

#20 – CONTACT WITH UTILITY LINES: If any part of the antenna should come in contact with a power line DON'T TOUCH IT OR TRY TO REMOVE IT YOURSELF.  You must call your local power company 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)

Are you planning on buying an outdoor antenna or have you just purchased one to extend your scanner’s reception capabilities from an average of 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 you follow some basic rules. 

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

Before you being installing your new antenna, there are some important things you should know and precautions you should take to avoid serious injury or death while installing your antenna.

That said, I have put together a list of 20 Basic Antenna Safety Rules 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/or follow:

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

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

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

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

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

#6 – IF DIGGING IS REQUIRED: Utility lines are is also buried underground. These include all of the utilities: Electric, Gas, Water, Cable, and Sewer. If you have to dig to bury the antenna cable or whatever else, be sure you know where these lines are to avoid potentially hitting one. You never know what may be under your feet and you don’t want to find out while digging a hole in the ground.

#7 – FAILSAFE DISTANCE: The failsafe distance is the minimum safe distance to avoid the antenna potentially falling on nearby utility lines should the antenna get blown over during a severe wind or rain storm.  To determine the FAILSAFE DISTANCE follow these steps:

A. – Determine the total height of your antenna.

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

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

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

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

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

-RF

Scannermaster Offers FREE SHIPPING for Christmas!

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

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

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

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



"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

• NeighborhoodScout: 100 Safest Cities in America
• FBI Uniform Crime Report
• FBI Website
• U.S. Dept. of Justice Website 

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



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 

• ROSAT Wiki  
• Larger Photo of ROSAT Satellite 
• ROSAT Live Tracking  
• Google News: ROSAT 
• NASA: ROSAT Information 
• Danger From Above: Satellite Crashing to Earth This Week! (Previous Post)

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

-RF

100 Most Dangerous Cities in America

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

• NeighborhoodScout: 100 Most Dangerous Cities in America
• Forbes: America's Most Dangerous Cities
• Forbes: In Pictures - America's Most Dangerous Cities
• FBI Uniform Crime Report
• FBI Website
• U.S. Dept. of Justice Website 

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!

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

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

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

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

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!!

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

 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

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

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