CAROLINE COUNTY

DEPARTMENT OF FIRE-RESCUE, AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT

STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE
SOP #
SUBJECT:
General Dispatching Radio Procedures for Fire and 1301.01
EMS Companies

APPROVED: INITIATED
Edward F. Fuzy December 1, 2007
Director of Fire – Rescue and Emergency Management

ADOPTED BY: EFFECTIVE

Major Mike Hall December 1, 2007
Caroline County Sheriff’s Office

Applies to : Career and Volunteer Staff REVISED

Communications Center Personnel

A. PURPOSE

To establish Department policies and procedures relative to general radio dispatch of the Fire and EMS
companies.

B. STANDARD

Caroline County has established general procedures for the radio dispatch and alerting of Fire and EMS
companies. The emergency communications center shall utilize this document as a guide for the dispatch of
these resources.

C. EMERGENCY CALL PRE-ALERTING

The following procedures will be utilized for the general pre-alerting of emergency dispatch calls to fire and
EMS units. Prior to radio tone activations, the communications center shall:
1. Activate the console pre-alert tone
2. Broadcast station assignments for the pending call in order of response
3. Broadcast the nature of the call
4. Broadcast the call address and business name if applicable

D. FIRE COMPANY RADIO DISPATCH – INITIAL ALERT

The following procedures will be utilized for the general radio dispatch alerting (toning) of emergency calls
to fire units. After the emergency call pre-alerting procedure, the communications center shall:
1. Activate the radio console tones for the fire assignment in order of response
o Include staffed fire companies as needed – SOP 1303.05
2. Broadcast station assignments for the pending call in order of response
3. Broadcast the nature of the call
4. Broadcast the call address, cross streets, and business name if applicable
5. Broadcast additional call information, hazards, etc.
The communication center shall note the time and begin a five minute alerting countdown clock as
SOP # 1301-01
 needed.

E. FIRE COMPANY RADIO DISPATCH – RE-ALERTING / RE-TONING

The following procedures will be utilized for the general radio dispatch re-alerting (re-toning) of emergency
calls to fire units. This will occur as necessary after five minutes has elapsed following the initial radio
alerting, and then every five minutes thereafter as necessary. After the five minute emergency call alerting
window, the communications center shall:
1. Poll the dispatched fire companies for units responding. For example, Companies 1 and 2 have
been dispatched without response – Communications would broadcast “Companies 1 and 2, units
responding?”.
2. If no answer to the polling question, the companies would be re-toned for response and Dispatch
shall then add the next due assigned companies to the re-tone list.

This process shall be repeated every five minutes until the assignment is filled or dispatch has been
otherwise advised by an identified company officer. Requesting that communications “hold tones” in lieu of
an actual apparatus response will no longer be permitted.

F. EMS COMPANY RADIO DISPATCH – INITIAL ALERT

The following procedures will be utilized for the general radio dispatch alerting (toning) of emergency calls
to EMS units. After the emergency call pre-alerting procedure, the communications center shall:
1. Activate the radio console tones for the EMS assignment in order of response
2. Broadcast station assignments for the pending call in order of response
3. Broadcast the nature of the call
4. Broadcast the call address, cross streets, and business name if applicable
5. Broadcast additional call information, hazards, etc.

The communication center shall note the time and begin a five minute alerting countdown clock as needed.

G. EMS COMPANY RADIO DISPATCH – RE-ALERTING / RE-TONING

The following procedures will be utilized for the general radio dispatch re-alerting (re-toning) of emergency
calls to EMS units. This will occur as necessary after five minutes has elapsed following the initial radio
alerting, and then every five minutes thereafter as necessary. After the five minute emergency call alerting
window, the communications center shall:
1. Poll the dispatched EMS companies for units responding. For example, Rescue 1 and 2 have
been dispatched without response – Communications would broadcast “Rescue 1 and 2, units
responding?”
2. If no answer to the polling questions, non-responding companies would be re-toned for response.
Dispatch shall add the next due assignment to the re-tone list as needed.

This process shall be repeated every five minutes until the assignment is filled, or an in-county Caroline
EMS unit is responding, or advised by a company officer. This does not apply to Caroline EMS units
responding from outside the County or non-Caroline mutual aid EMS units that are responding. In that case,
additional re-toning would occur the same as in section “E” above.

H. “PARROTING” OF CALL INFORMATION

The following procedures will be utilized for the “parroting” or repeating of call and command information
by the emergency communications center:
1. Communications shall advise known additional call information only to the primary or first due
unit and/or chief officer responding only. Unless otherwise requested, it shall not be necessary

SOP # 1301-01
 for the dispatch personnel to repeat additional call information to secondary units as they mark
responding. This is done in an effort to limit unnecessary radio traffic.
2. Communications shall “parrot” the scene size up and command assignment information given by
the first arriving unit. The use of an alert tone prior to “parroting” is no longer required.

I. RESPONSIBILITY

All fire, EMS, and communication personnel are responsible for utilizing this established dispatch criteria.

SOP # 1301-01