Thank you for your interest in Dispatching for CAROLINAS FIRE PAGE.
We have been in constant operation since 1995, and continue to be the best and first source for breaking fire and rescue news in North and South Carolina.
Dispatching involves choosing the correct primary response agency, providing an incident type, an address and details of the incident. That’s all there is to it.
On this page, we’ll attempt to help you get oriented using various resources.
Monitoring Locally
Dispatchers are expected to monitor their local fire-rescue agencies as much as possible. In addition to your immediate area, try and monitor adjacent counties and agencies.
Having one of our Dispatchers actually monitor for incidents is extremely important for this very reason: it is our closest link to timely, accurate information. This lessens our dependence on our members to report incidents.
If possible, we recommend using multiple radios to listen to various agencies. If you are in a very busy area, you may want to dedicate one or more radios to dispatch channels/talkgroups alone. In our experience, you can usually monitor agencies within a radius of at least 30 miles from your location.
For accurate resources, visit www.radioreference.com and see what agencies and frequencies you can add to your monitoring post. Stretch out from what you have monitored in the past. You may be surprised at what you can hear.
Secure and Sensitive Information
As a CFP Dispatcher, we ask that you respect the intellectual property rights of CAROLINAS FIRE PAGE, and as such, do not share or divulge any proprietary information provided to you about our operations and systems with anyone outside of the organization.
You should not disclose the name of any CFP member to anyone outside of the organization. Our members should receive anonymity privileges at all times. Refer to members by number, not their name, in any alert.
For obvious reasons, we ask that you not participate as a Dispatcher with any other notification network group. If you currently dispatch for another alert network, please contact us to discuss special arrangements.
Each Dispatcher is issued a unique log-in user name and password to the system. Do not share this information. If your user name/password becomes potentially compromised, request another one immediately.
Alerts should never be sent on the system that would compromise anyone’s privacy or rights.
Do not send any information that would compromise the security of a law enforcement operation.
In regards to information on fatalities, use only numbers and the sex (if known) of the victims. It is acceptable to refer to children by their approximate age. Never make a reference to a person’s race.
Joining the System
The first step is to get you programmed into the system so you can start receiving alerts (assuming you are not already a member).
Visit this link. (will open in a new window)
At the first question, choose “I have a promo code to use“.
Complete the form and use promo code 2023 Dispatcher.
You do NOT need to enter your credit card info. After hitting “Subscribe” you will be able to choose receiving options. Dispatchers are required to receive ALL North and South Carolina Counties. (this is for coordination and training purposes).
There is NO charge for Dispatchers to receive the alerts. Select any other options you might be interested in.
Dispatching Site
All dispatching is done using a secure, web-based site that you can access from any computer, smart phone or tablet.
We have included a series of short videos that we request you watch to get further oriented on how the system operates. Please watch the first THREE videos.
There is also a “Testing Mode” function that will allow you to practice before going live.
To get credentials to sign onto the Dispatching site, visit www.dispatch.cfpfireforce.com and click “Register”
(here is a screen shot of what you should see)
You will be sent a password after we have reviewed your request. (this does not happen automatically, so please allow for necessary time).
Once you have access to the site, please review the “Training for Alerts 5” section and practice with “Testing Mode”. Ask questions using the “Dispatcher IM”.
(screen shot)
Do not dispatch an actual alert until you have reviewed all of the materials and feel comfortable with the system. We recommend watching and learning at first.
Questions
Please be patient as we handle your initial programming.
If you have questions, here’s how to get in touch with Jeff Harkey, the system owner:
Text or call Jeff at 919-449-5148.
Jeff’s email is cfp700@carolinasfirepage.com
You can also use the “Dispatcher IM” window (chat) function on the Dispatch Console.
