Chapter 4 - Fire Service Communictions

What is the term for communications center dispatchers?

A. Public safety answering technicians

B. Telecommunicators

C. 911 receptionists

D. Signals technicians

B

What does the "A" stand for in "CAD"?

A. Aided

B. Automatic

C. Auxiliary

D. Ancillary

A

What does the "P" stand for in "GPS"?

A. Positioning

B. Proactive

C. Personnel

D. Preventive

A

Which is the most important objective in processing an emergency call?

A. Get the information needed to dispatch the appropriate units to the correct location

B. Calm and reassure the caller

C. Provide the caller with real-time, emergency instructions, such as how to perform CPR

D. Determine the nature and extend of the incident being reported

A

What does the "A" stand for in "PSAP"?

A. Alerting

B. Activating

C. Auxiliary

D. Answering

D

Which item is a primary factor in determining which units to send to an incident?

A. The reporting party's recommendation

B. The time lapse between call receipt and dispatch

C. The incident location

D. The reporting party's plausibility

C

Telecommunicators should use _________ listening.

A. critical

B. active

C. interrogatory

D. interpretive

B

What is the usual response when a caller disconnects before full information can be gathered and the dispatcher cannot reconnect by calling the caller back?

A. Log the incident and wait for the caller to call back

B. Send a full complement of responders, including police, EMS, and fire

C. Dispatch a police unit to check on the caller

D. Send a single engine to assess the situation

C

What is the function of the ANI feature of an enhanced 911 system?

A. Provide the caller's identity

B. Lock the caller's phone open

C. Show the caller's phone number

D. Show the caller's location

C

What should a call-taker do if a call comes in about an issue the fire department does not handle?

A. Transfer the call after providing the caller with contact information for the appropriate agency

B. Send the call to the back of the queue and take it when there is no priority traffic

C. Politely inform the caller that the fire department does not provide assistance for his or her issue

D. Advise the caller to call back on the nonemergency line

A

Which radio system monitors frequency loads and reassigns transmissions to unused frequencies?

A. Digital input/digital output (DIDO)

B. Interoperability

C. Multiplex

D. Trunked

D

What are TDD and TTY?

A. Location finders in enhanced 911 systems

B. Routers that direct wireless calls to the appropriate dispatch center

C. Communication devices for hearing-impaired persons

D. Voice-activated applications for smart phones that place a 911 call

C

The Americans with Disabilities Act requires that communications centers be able to receive calls by which medium?

A. Personal digital assistant (PDA)

B. Walk-in

C. Radio transmission

D. TTY/TDD

D

What does the "R" stand for in the LUNAR acronym?

A. Rescue needed

B. Resources

C. Repeat transmission

D. Responding

B

What does the "A" stand for in the LUNAR acronym?

A. Assess

B. Acknowledge

C. Actions

D. Air

D

What is the term for a two-way radio that is permanently mounted in a vehicle?

A. Mobile radio

B. Portable radio

C. Hi-band radio

D. Repeater

A

What is the function of the PTT button on a two-way radio?

A. Adjust the sensitivity of signal reception

B. Enable duplex transmission

C. Cause the radio to transmit

D. Transmit a distress signal

C

The NFPA standard requires that a communications center be equipped with:

A. a HEPA-grade air filtration system.

B. backup systems for all the critical equipment.

C. a reception area with a staffed watch desk.

D. a private water supply.

B

What does the "D" stand for in "CAD"?

A. Dispatch

B. Disaster

C. Department

D. Decision

A

Which statement about telecommunication center voice recorders is correct?

A. The recordings are useful for analysis of department operations.

B. The recordings are not discoverable for use in litigation.

C. Nondisclosure laws require destruction of recordings of routine traffic after 72 hours.

D. The units record only when manually activated by the telecommunicator.

A

What happens if a CAD system detects that an invalid address is being entered?

A. It sends a full first alarm assignment to each possible location

B. It prompts the telecommunicator to ask the caller for additional information

C. It offers a best estimate of the correct location

D. It sends a single unit to the nearest valid location

B

Approximately what percentage of the population of the United States has access to a 911 system?

A. 60

B. 70

C. 80

D. 95

D

What is the second step in the five-step process of emergency incident dispatch?

A. Classification/prioritization

B. Location validation

C. Confirmation

D. Caller interrogation

B

Telecommunicators need to know the location of the emergency and __________ to initiate a dispatch?

A. Nature of the situation

B. Reporting party identity

C. Callback number

D. Severity of the situation

A

What does the "N" stand for in "ANI"?

A. Number

B. Network

C. Normal

D. Name

A

What does an automatic location identification (ALI) system rely on to be effective?

A. A direct line

B. An accurate and current database

C. A minimum 30-second call duration

D. The caller's name

B

The majority of calls to dispatch centers come via:

A. landline phone.

B. the internet.

C. cellular phone.

D. text message.

C

Which statement about a cellular phone calling 911 is correct?

A. Numerous calls for the same incident may overload the communications center.

B. The calls are automatically prioritized to the rear of the queue.

C. Enhanced 911 system features eliminate the problem of locating the caller.

D. The call is routed to a national center, resulting in considerable delay in their receipt by the local telecommunication center.

A

What does the second "D" stand for in "TDD"?

A. Deaf

B. Dispatch

C. Dedicated

D. Device

A

What should any incoming calls without voice from the caller be checked for?

A. TDD/TTY/text phone signal

B. Fax or modem initiation signals

C. Instant messaging signal

D. An open carrier

A

There are _____ major steps in processing a report of an emergency incident.

A. three

B. four

C. five

D. six

C

What is the term for a phone line that connects two predetermined points?

A. Dedicated circuit

B. Private line

C. Local circuit

D. Direct line

D

What is the most common term for hand-held two-way radios carried by individual fire fighters?

A. Mobile radios

B. Walkie-talkies

C. Portable radios

D. Pocket radios

C

Which is a commonly used evacuation signal?

A. Radio broadcast of a sustained, 5-second alert tone

B. A sequence of 3 blasts on an apparatus air horn

C. Radio broadcast of a rapid sequence of 5 short alert tones

D. On-off operation of apparatus siren, sustained for 10 seconds

B

Which NFPA standard contains a complete list of qualifications for telecommunicators?

A. 1051

B. 1061

C. 1071

D. 1081

B

The generally accepted objective is approximately _____ seconds from the time a call reaches the communication until units are dispatched.

A. 30

B. 45

C. 60

D. 90

D

Which one of these devices connects a caller directly to a telecommunicator?

A. Local alarm

B. Fire alarm box

C. Central alarm station

D. Call box

D

What is the correct term for a radio system permanently mounted in a building?

A. Base station

B. Transmitter

C. Land radio system

D. Repeater system

A

Which agency licenses a fire department to operate a radio system?

A. Federal Communications Commission

B. The state office of emergency services

C. Federal Office of Communications

D. Federal Emergency Management Agency

A

What is the term for an urgent message, used by telecommunicator, which takes priority over all other communications?

A. Mayday

B. Code 30

C. Emergency traffic

D. Priority message

C

A fire department communication center functions most like a(n):

A. freeway interchange.

B. human brain.

C. Internet search engine.

D. coach.

B

What the third step in the five-step process of receiving and dispatching an emergency call?

A. Caller instruction

B. Unit notification

C. Unit selection

D. Classification and prioritization

D

What is the function of an automatic vehicle locator system?

A. Determine the location of mobile phone callers

B. Prioritize resources based upon location

C. Track apparatus location via GPS

D. Display fire department vehicle location on an electronic map

C

A __________ device is designed for use by hearing-impaired persons.

A. display

B. text

C. digital

D. video

B

Radio frequencies are designated in units of:

A. megahertz.

B. hertz.

C. gigahertz.

D. terahertz.

A

What is the term for a radio that transmits and receives on two different frequencies?

A. Analog

B. Multiplex

C. Duplex

D. Binary

C

What is the term for a radio signal that alerts personnel to pull back to a safe location?

A. Withdrawal order

B. Mayday

C. Evacuation signal

D. Emergency traffic

C

What does the term "mayday" mean?

A. Everyone withdraw from the hazard area

B. A fire fighter is in trouble and needs assistance

C. Hold all radio traffic

D. Deploy the rapid intervention crew (RIC)

B

The use of plain language in radio communication is recommended by the NFPA and _____________________:

A. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

B. National Incident Management System (NIMS).

C. The US Fire Administration (USFA).

D. Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

B

Time marking is specifically intended to be an aid to:

A. crews working in IDLH atmosphere.

B. the safety officer.

C. group/division supervisors.

D. the incident commander.

D