Within the last week there have been a couple forest fires close to my home and I was unable to gather any information on what was happening until the tanker planes, helicopters, and fire equipment were returning to their station. Anyhow, considering purchasing a handheld police and fire scanner so I can listen as the event is happening, nothing complicated or expensive, hopefully I will not have to use it for quite some time. If any member is familiar w/ the devices suggestions and comments appreciated!!

 

Check out an phone app called Scanner Radio. Your local department may be on there already

 

please try this link Broadcastify - Listen Live to Police, Fire, EMS, Aircraft, and Rail Audio Feeds

 

I use scanner radio on my Galaxy S5 phone. It's great, when the users are broadcasting the real time situations. I dont know if you being up in the mountains will hinder your cell phone reception?....

 

I bought a scanner at radio shack, has tons of channels and a weather alert as well. Best investment i made, you can go on line or to the county you live in and they will give you the frequency that you want. it's legal to own but some cops frown upon it, so shut it off if you have one in your car.

 

Appreciate comments. Preface by admitting I am not computer literate so when I went to the website there's a menu providing the free 'online' download but when it came to the final step there's a computer cleaner "RegProClean" software reporting few hundred errors in my current software that it want to clean-up so I am hesitant in taking the final step. To make sure it does not make any changes to my computer software I may regret I will have to look into this website further , not clear if this RegProClean is part of the free online download??

In the meantime, came across the 'Radio Scanner Guide' website, considering I do not have a clue when it comes to Radio Scanners, I found the website very informative. Again, appreciate comments and suggestions, thank you!!

 

Yes, living among the redwoods there's only 1 cell phone provider, I will check and see if they offer the radio scanning feature. Thank you
.

 

The cell provider doesn't offer it. If you have a smart phone with data service you can use that app.

 

I am not clear if there's a certain brand, or type scanner that provides a certain frequency for the police and fire in my area, I do know they do work but unfortunately I did not pay attn. when visitors have brought a handheld with them.

 

Appreciate U's comments and suggestions, as I mentioned, came across a website that may clear up some of the questions I have about radio scanners in general.
Radio Scanner Guide - Mainpage

With regards to the concerns I had about not being able to get info on the recent fires in my are, I forgot there have been a number of occasions the emergency event caused a power outage and thus I do not have access to the internet. Considering this, the hand held scanner looks like it might be one of the better options??? Again, thank you for the comments and suggestions!!!

 

wheres the santa cruz mountains ill look for you

 

i just click on state narrows it down

 

I can narrow it down to state and city; however, after taking into consideration the occasional power outage, the handheld device may be the better option, hopefully, it would not be used that often. Have not been able to find a product review by customer's so if a member has some experience with one brand or anther and has an opinion comments appreciated.

 

If you want to buy a scanner, the first thing you need to do is determine what exactly you want to listen to, and what type of radio system they're using. This will determine what type of scanner you need.

There are many different types of scanners. If the radio system you want to listen to is a VHF analog system, all you'll need is a simple inexpensive scanner that you can plug in some frequencies and scan away. If it's a 800mhz digital system (which are becoming more and more common) you'll need a much more expensive digital trunking scanner. These run around $500 new.

I would highly recommend going to www.radioreference.com and ask for help in the location specific forum for your area. This will get you in touch with people in your area that will know much more about what you'll need.

Most public safety communications are digital in my area, so I have a Uniden BCD396XT digital scanner. I also have a couple other scanners for listening to other things.

I don't know exactly what your plans are, but be aware that in some states it's illegal to have a scanner in your vehicle, so check your local laws on this. Here in MN it's illegal, but having a ham radio license allows me to have a scanner in my vehicle.

Sent from my HTC ONE using IB AutoGroup

 

Appreciate the resource, I set up an account and posted a thread; hopefully, in the correct forum pertaining to my city and state, awaiting a response. Again, thank you!!.