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While in many parts of the US you will find 2nd and 3rd alarm assignments,with regards to the Los Angeles City Fire Department, the opposite of what you are used to is true. After the first assignment is on scene, the IC will order up each unit individually such as, "Send me 3 additional task forces and 1 800." The only major "category" of additional units would be to upgrade a traffic accident to a physical rescue assignment which would add the Heavy Rescue and additional units. Please see this thread and this thread and search alarms or boxes for even more. It's something thats been covered many times on this board and one of the things that makes Los Angeles different in it's own way. Freeplay events are hard coded and cannot be changed beyond a few simple edits, as it stands right now you can change the freeplay event file to have the suspect remain in place for however long you want instead of running around setting multiple fires, but adding an Inspector is something that could only useful as part of a mission, not a freeplay event.

UPDATED 12/23/2008: Sesnon IC - LAFD Update & SGPD Back in the swing of things with another batch from the Sesnon Fire. This time its 80 pics of a little bit of everything LAFD. There are shots of the new LAFD Battalion 7 and 10 Suburbans, Engines 46, 75, and 107, a full complete walk around of water tender 60 including top-down shots for modelers, Swift Water 88s truck, Water Tender 77's old rig and just to keep things different, 6 shots of South Gate PD's new Dodge Charger. Enjoy! -- The 18-200 is a nice walk around lens provided you get a good copy. Make sure the first thing you do is download a focus chart and check for hunting and back focus issues. Sigma is notorious for a real lack of quality control. Some lenses will be amazing, others will be dogs that won't hunt.. so to speak. Because of the popularity of that lens, it's sometimes hard to find a good copy but when you do it's a very nice lens. Just remember to always use the hood with it due to flare issues, and get a good, ie not cheap, UV filter for the front.

Having spent a good portion of my fire career, going on 14 years now, in Wildland and Forestry, I've only been on 2 incidents that involved smoke jumpers, 1 in California (Shields Fire) and 1 in Colorado. While Region 5 does have Smoke jumpers based 542 miles north of LA in Redding, the topography and accessibility of most areas in Southern California have made Helitack much more useful and effective. Stating with 1.7, you now have this ability in the game to transport a helitack crew of LA City or USFS firefighters into an area with extinguishers and axes to create fire breaks and put out fires in hard to reach areas. This is consistent with the tactics and resources utilized in the Angeles National Forest and both SRA (State Resource Area) and LRA (Local Resource Area) wildland, forest, and urban interface lands. Unlike many areas of the US, set packages and alarms are not found in the LAFD, but instead, as discussed numerous times throughout this board, there is a complex algorithm used to dispatch units to calls based on availability, nearest ALS or BLS resource and type of call. The whole point of the game is to correctly manage your units and dispatch the appropriate ones to the call without completely depleting your units for the next call, just like in real life. With set dispatches, you run into the other problem of being tied to just on screen units that may or may not be available. What if its in an area where an LACoFD squad and a BLS ambulance might be more appropriate of a response, or an ALS engine and a bls ambulance, or an ALS ambulance and a light force? The combination's that are possible with the new and accurate EMS system are staggering and allow for the player to pick the best grouping for the call based on type, location, and resources allocated already.

Looks like the latest are 178.24 for that card. Go here for the latest drivers.

At the end of your logfile, you'll find: ?ERROR: The Vision engine requires support for the ARB_multitexture extension! Please make sure you have the latest video drivers installed for your 3D card. You will need to install the latest drivers for your video card, and if that still doesn't help, see if you can find some that are a bit older then your current as new drivers sometimes have issues with older games.

Regarding the dispatch audio/radio commands the problem with changing the video is that the game does not recognize the new files within the mod. You would have to replace the original files in the game outside of the mod folder, and with all of the issues people are already having with the simple mod installer, having them navigate, and replace original files would be a nightmare. I have many of the files already done with actual LAFD and PD dispatches recorded, but I am debating releasing it as a Do-It-Yourself with NO assistance submod or something. Like you said, it wouldn't make much of a difference. Just a note, LAFD does not utilize Flight Nurses. Khaki overalls = Pilot, Orange = Helitac Crew (operate the hoist, provide for safety on the ground and stuff like that), Blue = Helitac Medics You wouldnt? Where the heck was I when I took this picture a couple of days ago? Remember, there have only been 35 of the new style rigs purchased. With 106 stations, and a great deal of those stations having both an ALS and a BLS ambulance assigned to it, you're looking at only about 20% - 25% of the stations getting the new ambulances. We'll be seeing the white boxes around LA for quite some time. The next budget is asking for just 23 ambulances, which might get cut down with budget cuts. Newfoundking is correct. The LAFD Patrols aren't fully staffed but cross staffed with other apparatus, or back filled during significant weather events. They don't actually patrol the city, but will patrol the foothills and mountain areas for mudslides and fires when weather requires it. Ami is correct, LAFD doesn't use Panthers and the Firefighters assigned to Fire Station 51 are very happy with their Oshkosh and E-Ones.

Thanks, next up will probably be a walk around of LAFD Foam Tender 60 and Swift water 88. From that day alone, I have 720 shots to go through and I've only uploaded about 250 of them.

Officer down would get just about every single available LAPD and nearby LEO in the area, plus an EMS response from LAFD with an EMS captain and usually a BC added. For firefighter down, please read this link for LAFD's RIC policies They've just started to receive some of the new ones with the more subdued chevrons and LED lights. I don't have the numbers in front of me, but going off memory, I believe the department is only getting 35 or less of the new rigs, which in the grand scheme, is a very small percentage. As for in game, that's a question for someone else. Yes, many of them. Now the real question is, are you asking if they have any pickup trucks that patrol streets? No. Venice Beach alone has a couple of trucks with lights and sirens but they're the only ones. They also have special duty trucks assigned to the Bomb Squad, Dive Squad, and even ones with large speakers on them for evacuations and riots/demonstrations. As far as the game would be concerned, having a truck just for that one little strip of beach on the maps is a bit silly for all of the work that goes into scripting and creating a vehicle. Mike

Spaloo, as usual is pretty on the nose on this one, with one minor comment. The Truck will have a Captain II (Task Force Captain) on board and the Engine will have a Captain I. A Battalion Command Team is made up of the Battalion Chief and his Staff Assistant and most structure fires and incidents never make it to Major Emergency or Greater alarm status and are handled solely by the single Battalion Chief. A typical LAFD Battalion will usually cover an area of 5 to 10 stations large, and span more then one community. Here are some typical fire responses: On that one, the DC also responded due to some investigation and administrative issues that occurred. It has to be pretty large for additional BC's to respond, or a DC to arrive. Why? Because between the BC, the SA, and the EMS Captain, you have 3 command personnel along with Captain II's and I's taking over divisions and branches. Here is an example of a Major Emergency fire: So, as for realism....yeah... 2 stations isn't that much for a single BC at all. Afterall, that's only 3 (2 Engines, 1 Light Force) companies of firefighters. Even with Station 1 overstocked, you only have 5 companies which is well within a BC's "Span of Control." Mike

As demonstrated recently by the May Day demonstrations and the Prop 8 demonstrations in and around Los Angeles, Crowd Control and Riot Control is a complex operation involving every officer in the department. Motor officers and bike patrol units are used for quick response, quick barriers, and routing groups. Regular patrol officers with helmets, batons and other protection as necessary ,can form up platoons and response lines for direct control and confrontation. Metro Divison will deploy SWAT and Mounted Calvary Platoons for special needs and weapons deployment, with SWAT being tasked with all specialty weapons such as tear gas and other items in their arsenal. Other officers and commanders will be tasked with public address/information and deploy numerous loudspeaker vehicles. Mike

UPDATED 12/22/2008: Sesnon IC - LAPD and LAFD Update Happy Holidays everyone! Tis the season and I hope it's finding all of you well and warm. Finals are over, the weather has calmed down, and that means I'm back to updating the website! Today's update is 92 shots from the Sesnon fire of LAPD Patrol units, LAUSD PD Patrol and Motor Units, LAPD's ATV, and walk a around of LAFD's new Brush Patrols and Rescue Ambulances. Enjoy! PS. Firefighter111, you had asked about the new BP's 109s and 47s being able to transport patients. If you click on the albums, you can see that my friend Mr. Cutler misspoke when he mentioned the ability to carry a patient. I actually opened the small access door where they keep the stokes just for you, and as you can see, there really is no patient transport ability with the BPs, new or old. Mike

Not at all. The point of the mod is to make the game accessible to those in all areas of the world, West and East, North and South, regardless of language or skill level or understanding of the Los Angeles Fire and EMS and Law Enforcement system. Be they a child in London, or a Paramedic from africa, or someone from eastern europe who might have a poor grasp of the english language or our concepts of emergency response. By keeping things simple, providing tooltips on each response, and issuing a manual that explains the concepts, the people who created the LA Mod want EVERYONE to be able to use it and enjoy it throughout the world. How you took anything racist from that, I have no idea.

What more do you want? There is no EMD in the game to tell you if you have a patient that is minor, moderate, or severe, even with the call type. Falls, heart attacks and food poisonings can all be either low on the life bar or high depending on your difficulty setting. It is YOUR job to decide what resources to send and how to send based on the call type and availability of units. That could be the LACoFD Paramedic squad and an 800, it could be an ALS engine and an 800, it could be just an a Paramedic RA and no one else, it could be an Air Ambulance or any other type of combination the game allows. There is no way possible to apply a 9 tree decision process algorithm to a game that has 1 step - guy lying on ground needs to be picked up and seen by an ALS unit... soo.. send an ALS unit. If you are a role player who wants utmost authenticity, you'd send the nearest Fire Company along with the ALS unit, but even that wouldn't be always authentic because depending on the algorithm you could get the following responses for the same ALS required medical aid patient in different areas at different times of the day: Paramedic Assessment Engine and RA Paramedic Assessment Light Force and RA Paramedic Assessment Engine and 800 Paramedic Assessment Light Force and 800 RA and 800 2 RAs BLS Engine and RA BLS Light Force and RA Just one RA and no one else LACoFD Squad and 800 LACoFD Squad and RA LAcoFD Squad, Patrol, and Engine, and 800 LAcoFD Squad, ALS Engine and 800 LAcoFD Squad, ALS Engine and RA Light Force, Engine, RA, and Air Ambulance and so on and so forth through a multitude of lists. And with the game never requiring you to interview family members, gather meds, carry down flights of stairs, lift 600lbs patients who are unconscious in a bath tub, there is no reason to send a light force along with the RA unless all of your ALS units are committed and you need to send the nearest fire company to at least see if the patient can be stabilized for transport. That is what makes the algorithm so complex and in the game you have to make the decision yourself. Send the correct resource to the correct call. If an RA only will do, just like in real life an RA is all you will and should get. If ALS is extended ETA, then you get whoever is closest. That is why the cad tip says: Nearest Paramedic Resource and RA for transport. It's up to you to decide who what when and where because there are just way to many possibilities. Here is an old quote from Brian Humphrey, PSO for LAFD on the Dispatch algorithms: To dumb that down even farther so people in Bulgaria, Africa, or 12 year old boys in England who play this game can understand it, you end up with Nearest ALS and ambulance for transport. Mike

No they are not, and if you read the tooltips over the incident, they already are applied.

For LAFD, No, in fact most medical dispatches are based on a complex EMD matrix that assigns it a category level and an algorithm based on available resources and time-on-scene to decide. To simplify it, the worst case scenarios will get the nearest fire company (Light force or Engine, with engine taking priority) and an ALS Rescue Ambulance. That is 4+2 or 6+2 on scene. Other calls might just get an 800 rescue ambulance and no additional resources, say for an extremity injury. The goal of the algorithms is to get BLS or Paramedic Assessment level care on scene as fast as possible, usually in 3 minutes or less from time of dispatch, with Paramedic care being there in 5 or less. LACoFD will either send an Engine, Light force, or Truck with a squad and ambulance which will give you 7 to 9 personnel on scene depending on the response. For stations with Patrols, depending on the way that station operates, they'll usually respond to all medical aids along with the Engine, Squad and ambulance as well.

By quad, i'm guessing you are reffering to all terrain vehicle. The USAR and CA TF do have a few like these: But they're just used for logistical purposes not for off roading.

A search on these forums would have shown you this post in this thread.

Actually the big clue goes back to my list, this one is a pretty easy one if you look at the details. Some things that stand out: Size of the numbers on the door Patch/Logo on the door. Paint scheme, do you see how the roll up doors are silver, not painted? Aluminum ladders vs wood ladders Cities name is written on the nose. Straight white stripe, many other depts have a Z pattern Notice the numbering, 1, 3, 9, 24, 26... That makes this a larger department then most and these rigs are all identical so that makes it a rather large single purchase. Make and Model of the rig. That was how i found the other one so easily that FF111 posted, the same can be done with this one as well. Notice the writing in the white stripe too. While you can't make it out easily on the rear door, look at the other pics you come across and you can eliminate those that do not have that. And now you also know that it isn't a West coast city, which narrows things down. Let me give you an example of why this is NOT an LAFD rig so that you can see how to rule out some pics. LAFD does not have numbers on rear door, but has the city name instead LAFD city logo looks nothing like the one on these rigs. LAFD has all painted doors LAFD uses all Wood ladders, which is a great key since so few departments do LAFD writes the apparatus number on the nose under the windshield on Engines, not the cities name and does not have the smaller number on the angle under the Captains side. LAFD uses the Z pattern Numbering wont help you rule out LAFD on this one... Make and model of the rig. LAFD uses only Pierce and Seagrave engines, this is not a Pierce or Seagrave. LAFD writes CLASS 1 on the rear door of their rigs in most years, and rarely anything on the front door which isnt what you see on these. To determine make/model of the rigs, look at key things like shape of windows, side mirrors, bumper, grille, and the cab. All it takes is noticing those little details and not trying to find the exact one, but being able to quickly and easily rule out the ones that aren't correct until you do find the one department that matches. Mike -- P.s As for beating me, well I wouldn't be so cocky about that. I went to the manufacturer of the rig and that's who they said purchased and delivered it to. It's not exactly incorrect as the department is like the Los Angeles County Fire Department. While most people know it as the Los Angeles County Fire Department, the actual official name is Los Angeles County Fire Protection District which is how we also provide Fire/EMS service to a city in Orange County. Greenwood Lake is the same thing, their colloquial FD name is the Green Wood Lake fire department, but their administrative body is the Greenwood Lake Joint Fire District. Same department, same address, same people, just slightly different name.

Yes, and I did. Only took a few minutes too, I mean really, this one isn't difficult guys. Sorry for being away for so long, as you al know the fires out here have been raging, and midterms too. I'm exhausted and going to bed!

Due to the large quantities of apparatus purchased each budget cycle, very few manufacturers can fulfill the whole order. The last order was split 13 and 13 between Pierce and Seagrave equally, and the airport rig just fell into that purchase. Mike.

The "'trick" if there is one is to employ the real life tactic of Strike Teams. A Strike Team is a group of 5 like resources and 1 Command Officer. For example, a Charlie or Type III USFS strike team would be 5 Type III brush engines and 1 Chief officer. An Alpha or Type I LAFD strike team would be 5 Type I engines and 1 chief. In the game the chief isnt really needed, but by responding groups of 5 to stage at the fire, and ahead of the fire, you can then surround and drown with enough resources. Remember, you always want to stop the forward progress of the fire and make a stand that says the fire isn't going to get past this point. Concentrate most of your resources at containing the fire, not attacking what is already burning. If PD incidents are more of your cup of tea, think of it like the pickpocket suspect on the run. You dont want to respond your PD units to where the criminal was and then have to run after him on foot, but instead you respond your units where he is running to, get out and grab him! You want to cut him off and stop him or you'll always just be 1 step behind the whole time and its the same with the fire. Don't chase the tail, hit the head! Also use the brush Patrols (type IV/VI for those who are curious) for quick hits and to structure protection. A single strike team of them can be broken up and used for quick mop up and attacks of spot fires that might take off. Mike.

I also set it to the hardest level and it's the biggest challenge since the Forest Fire mission Hoppah created.

Those are the best approximation of responses to the incident based on the LAFD dispatch matrix and limitations/necessities of the game. You can read more about A and B assignments in this post and if you search Physical Rescue Assignments, you can read up more on those responses. For those who asked about fire tactics, here are some simple lessons for non-enterable structures 1) Spot your truck first. Due to the mechanics of the game, the general rule of thumb is to place it one lane over from the building or head in. Someone mentioned trying to get the truck to shoot farther, but as long as you give the ladder enough room to rotate, you'll be able to nail the buildings almost every time. 2) Have the first engine go PAST the incident and set up on the exposures (structures/trees) where the fire is spreading to and have the 2nd engine attack the body of the fire. 3rd and 4th should work as others mentioned from the outside in. The trick is to have the fire contained to just the building involved and not let it keep spreading on you. 3) Have the 2nd man on the truck wait with the RA and EMS supervisor. If something should go wrong like a car you didnt notice explode, these guys are what the LAFD refers to as RIC or Rapid Intervention Company. 4) If its a large fire with multiple fronts. Hot key the Chief and the Staff Assistant (firefighter with the chief) different numbers and place them on opposite sides of the fire. You can quickly flip between the two and see the progress in the areas. 5) Don't always be so quick to redirect traffic. If you are expecting additional units from off map, keep one lane open for traffic. Redirecting means traffic in BOTH lanes blocking incoming units. If the building is can be entered, 1) Due to the game mechanics, either hook up to the hydrant and use a wye, or have your guys use Fire Extinguishers and make entry to look for anyone injured and attack the body of the fire. Some fires cannot be extinguished unless you go direct attack inside. The reason for the hydrant is sometimes your nozzelman will get stuck in the building with the hose. The last thing you want is to have to leave your engine there too because the guy cant get out of the building. 2) If it has a 2nd floor that you can enter, have the first FF from the truck enter and search for victims or remove civilians, and have the 2nd enter with an extinguisher. Have the 1st go back up in the basket and use the master stream after dropping off the patient or civilian in a safe spot while the one with the extinguisher attacks the body of the fire. One big note, don't be bashfull about using the USFS engine for trees and calling in additional off map resources. The last thing you want to do is to have empty fire stations in case another call comes in near there. For example, if you have a fire at the bank on the FR map and both stations have no units inside, think how long it will take for units to respond if a gas explosion happens across the street from FS1. With the USFS rigs and off map units, you can send units back to your fire station for the next call and leave those guys to mop up. Also notice where the entry points are. Is it better to call an ALS ambulance from FS1 or off map, or to use the LACoFD squad and wait a little bit longer for BLS ambulances or the mass casualty unit? Is there a police unit on patrol near the crime or is it faster to call for a Sheriff or CHP unit, an LAPD unit, or the unmarked unit? The whole trick is to use your resources without compromising your ability to respond to additional calls. The last time I played FP, I had a flash strike with the damage radius modified as I mentioned. The entire South West corner of the map was on fire. 16 structures, all of the ornamental vegetation, and the trees near the hospital all at once with 6 patients as well. The key to a large incident like that with many units coming from off map is to create a staging area and a direct flow of traffic into the area. Once the units reach the staging area, you can best see where you need to place them as the event will be fluid and quickly changing. One last note, back-fill the station! If you know you are going to nearly or completely empty the station on a long call, have off map units put at least one Fire suppression company inside of the station. Last thing you need is to get another fire or accident and you're still trying to gather up all of your hose and men. Mike

Check your settings and see if you have tool tips or anything else disabled. It works with both 911FR and EM4/EM4 Deluxe

Remember, Not all streams are equal. The power of the truck master stream is a great force multiplier in real life and in the game. Most fires short of the gas explosion and some of the other biggies can be handled with the Task Force at the station. The power of the Task Force concept is that you have 2 Engines and 1 truck which gives you 10 men and quite a lot of water and all of the tools you could ever hope for. For those who keep using the word realism, remember that if you place your mouse over the incident in the tab window, it'll show you what a typical LAFD/LAPD response is to that kind of incident. The only people who wear vests right now are the Department of Transportation/Parking Enforcement officers. CHP, LAPD, LASD, none of them do... but I qualify that with... right now. Come the first of the year, new protocols are being discussed and debated ad-nauseum about requiring Law Enforcement and even Firefighters to have ANSI level rated protection that supersedes what turnout gear already offers. So who knows, maybe one day I'll see a CHiPie or Deputy wearing a vest, but I doubt it.