?GREAT THINGS I HAVE DONE WITH MY SCANNER
?Great Things I Have Done With My Scanner
by Peter Szerlag February 23, 1999 / June 17, 1999
Here is a megalist of all the great things I have accomplished with my scanner.
1. Advised Maryland State Police Helo Trooper 4 from Andrews AFB of a ?Squirrel Point Power Plant fire in Southern Princes Georges Co MD - ?1982 - pilots confirmed incident with PG County Fire Dispatch and flew to fire - when they arrived, the officer on ?Engine 39 had already climbed 700 feet up the chimney stack to reach the workers sitting at the top and everyone was OK. (Rescue 3 had advised Dispatch on Channel 3 that rescue helos existed at Pawtuxent naval Air Station but Dispatch never acknowledged this message).
1A. Relayed hemorhoid call from PA ambo to PG Co Fire Dispatch via 911 from 155.34 - ?1982 - dispatcher declined to relay message to PG County Hospital (I dont blame him).
1B. Tried to tell Prince Georges Co FD (in Maryland) to get rid of tail on Ch 4 rptr - ?1982 - radio guy that I spoke to on the phone got very upset and said that if people used the correct procedures the problem would not occur (which is false)
2. Called in head shot from Cataldo/Everett to Boston CMED - ?1980s. (155.28) - ambulance was flying thru Sullivan Square and having no luck contacting Boston CMED on 155.28.
3. Told Arlington FD that ?heart attack call was in Lexington - ?1970s (?I looked up name in telo book?)
4. Told Arl FD that heart attack was on Oakland Ave - ?not in E Arlington. (?looked up name in telo book?) - ?1976 - ?fight between mentally dangerous son and father - father had heart attack - Arlington Advocate reported on delayed police response. (?not sure if this is all the same incident)
5. Relayed message from MRS45 to BFD re MVA at Storrow Dr and Mass Ave - ?1995
6. Manhole explo - Kendall Sq - 1 dead - told Cambridge Fire Alarm Office that 1 person was still in hole - ?1997 - I heard the call for help on 158.25R - "Mr Polland is still in the hole!" "We need help - we need an ambulance"
7. Told BFD ?2 times that 2 rptrs were beating
8. Told BPD that VT was skipping down during hurricane - ?1995
9. Told Plaistow NH that she was toning Atkinson R on 154.16 by mistake - she had been told already
10. Told Andover of major MVA on 495 per ?151.145R - they relayed call to ?Tewksbury (camper rolled over)
11. Scuba diver inbound to USCG Base Boston - I alerted Boston EMS - ?11/98 - diver was in cardiac arrest and nobody had advised BEMS
12. Tried to get MedFlite to fly to trucker trapped in wreck on Rte 3 in Hanover - Weld was Governor- ?1995 - media helo ?was at the scene amid lite snow showers but MedFlite would not fly
13. ?1997 - called FCC to tell them that 462.975 was patched to 154.31 - FCC guy tried to blow me off and ask for my monitoring permit number but I persisted and he came around.
14. ?January 1999 - a suburban Boston PD - I called the PD and said - "you know that call about the syringe in the parking lot" - and he immediately said - "did you put it there?" - and I said - "No, I did not put it there but the car that was assigned just got assigned to an ambulance call at the same time" - pause - so he asks the other dispatchers - did you assign a car to the syringe call - silence - OK - hang on - Car XXX did you handle the syringe call? (via radio) - "I am taking care of that now" was the sly reply - so the dispatcher asks me - "Are you worried about us (screwing up)?" - and gracious me, I said - "I would hate to see some kid find it."
15. Bedford MA - helped out lost MedFlight - I cant believe I forgot this one - maybe ?1993 - Bedford had a couple of male teenagers go flying under the back of a tractor-trailer truck that was backing out of a ?driveway onto ?South St - 1 kid was dead and 1 was critical - so MedFlite was called - they flew out from Boston and were talking to Bedford Fire Alarm on 154.34 but they could not find the scene - the dispatcher was telling them to go to the right of the runway - MedFlite thought they would just follow some flashing lights to the scene - unfortunately, both Concord and Lincoln were rolling rigs to other EMS calls at the time and MedFlite was going in circles around Hanscom Air Force base - I called Bedford Fire on the phone - the daytime girl/dispatcher/secretary had come in and she answered - this was at nite around ?8PM - I said "Isnt the location of the LZ NE of the airport" - at that precise second Medflite again called in for the loc - the girl said out loud"yes, I think it is NE of the airport" - the guy on the base radio heard her say that and immediately told the helo - "It is NE of the airport" - within 15 seconds, Medflite was at the scene.
?1997 - Lexington MA - Lex ambo was taking a kid with a severe head injury to Childrens Hospital in Boston - it was around ?3PM on a weekday so I figured that traffic would be heavy - I called the State Police and asked if they had a car around Alewife - they said that they did not - he ?asked if I had/?I offered telo number for Lex FD and I said no - then he said "thats OK - I have it right here" - shortly thereafter the Rescue was advised via 154.34 that a state trooper would be waiting for them on Rte 2 by Mt Auburn Hosp - Lex R said that they would not be delaying transport for PD - however no delay was required and the Rescue called off at Childrens "with an assist from the State Police" - I think that a parent was with the child and 1 parent was a doctor - everyone was happy with the escort I guess.
