An article on the CBS Chicago website mentions the CFD has begun the transition to digital radios, beginning with EMS.
After six years of testing – and spending more than $20 million – the Chicago Fire Department has finally started to go digital.
The switchover from analog to digital radios began Sunday at 8 a.m., with EMS paramedics getting the new radios.
“The fire department has been testing the system, along with OEMC (the Office of Emergency Management and Communications), and the Fire Department at this time is satisfied with the performance of the system, and we are ready to go live,” Langford said.
Langford says firefighters will start training with the digital radios in June and will switch to digital before the end of the year.
“Every person on the rig will have a radio,” Langford says. That will be a first for the Fire Department – where everyone has a radio.
Langford says the department will keep the option to switch back to analog, if necessary.
The article can be found HERE.
#1 by scott on April 18, 2012 - 8:25 PM
This is not a committee or procedural problem why CFD Fire cos have not switched. The system has been held off for safety reasons. There where numerous dead spots thruout the city and until just about all have been fixed that is why the fire side has not moved over. Their current VHF system and fireground operations has been working very well. Contrary to the official line of duty death report from NIOSH that stated the lack of radios contributed to the firefighters death last year, that is incorrect! A lack of radios had absolutely no bearing on their unfortuate & tragic deaths. The roof coming down on them did. A radio in their hands would not have made a difference.
I am in full agreement with radios for all for safety reasons but that would not have changed the outcome that day.
#2 by chris r on April 17, 2012 - 12:33 PM
Fyi im listening from GLEN ELLYN IL and the system comes in loud and clear. IM probaly 20 miles away. THE frequencies are uhf digital, so need a digital scanner, i have a radio schack pro 106, need to set as a p25 digital talkgroup. THE frequencies are citywide fire 476.6875, cfd ems main 477.5125, cfd fire main 477.78750, chicago oemc 477.9875, cfd fire englewood 478. 2125, cfd ems englewood 478.4625. I read that one bank of scanner should have just digital frequencies and there are a bunch of uhf frequencies of uhf analog, put in a seperate bank. cfd admin 462.9750, cfd firegnd 458.0250, cfd ems command 458. 1750, cfd command 458.1250, cfd fire tac 470.1625, cfd ops 8 476.2875, cfd ops 9 479.2875, cfd ops 10 477.6625, cfd ops 11 480.6625, cfd utilities 458.0750, cfd events 1 478.5000 , cfd events 2 481. 5000 , cfd cta fire 460.0625 . There some more general city frequencies , which can be found on either wwwradioreference.com or wwwchichagocarma.com. I hope this helps and enjoy listening to the cfd.
#3 by chris r on April 17, 2012 - 1:09 AM
ITS the wheels of goverment, everything goes slow. They have to have a committee to form a committee. So far the system is coming in loud and clear. Why is it going to take so long to get the fire department on board, they aren’t training the fd side until june 2012. The good thing is everyone will have a portable radio on the fireground. Its supposed to be on system by the end of 2012.
#4 by Nick N on April 16, 2012 - 3:26 PM
What the heck has taken so long??? Six years?! Do they have 1 I.T. guy working the whole city?