Buffalo Fire Department Radio Operations
The Buffalo Fire Department's Alarm Office is operated out of 332 Ellicott Street in downtown Buffalo. The Alarm Office is staffed mostly by civilian dispatchers, as the department has attempted to phase out uniformed firefighters in the alarm office. The Alarm Office is home to the Communications Division and Radio Repair of the Buffalo Fire Department. These personnel are civilians, who manage not just the communications for the fire department, but also the police, public works, ambulance dispatch, etc.
The Buffalo Fire Department used to send alarms as the FDNY still does in box format. The gong would strike out the call box number. If it was a working fire or an additional alarm was requested, the gong would strike out the box number, and then a 2-2, 3-3, 4-4, 5-5, or a 6-6 for a General Alarm. A General Alarm is all apparatus in the city, the recall of off duty platoons, and the implementation of mutual aid plans with suburban departments. The Larkin Warehouse Fire of the 1950s was the only General Alarm in the BFD's history.
Today, the Buffalo Fire Department transmits alarms in tone form. Two short tones signify an EMS Call, three short tones signify a Still Alarm or Preliminary Signal. Three long tones signify an Alarm of Fire and four long tones signify a HazMat response.
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