Etter, Ted . 2007. Emergency Communications for Remote Operations. 0767 2301. Missoula, MT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Technology and Development Program. 8 p.
The Forest Service Handbook and the U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration's regulations require that employees working at remote locations have personal communication capabilities at all times. Providing emergency communications in remote mountainous terrain is difficult. The Missoula Technology and Development Center tested satellite communication options for effectiveness at remote, mountainous Forest Service work sites in California, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. Although transmissions could be established from most of the test sites, transmissions from some of the sites took several minutes or longer to become established and at one site only 1 of 24 attempted transmissions was successful. In such areas, it may be possible to use commercially available packages combining a satellite transmitter that is located for good coverage with companion pocket-sized devices that connect to it using a wireless network. Although satellite phones offer the assurance of a standard phone conversation, some satellite transmitters that simply send location and an alarm status may be smaller, lighter, and more likely to establish communication.
Keywords: Axon, LLC, AXTracker, backcountry, Bendix-King radios, Globalstar, Inc., safety at work, satellite radios, wilderness
View HTML
These files are best for printing:
View high resolution PDF (3310 kb)
If you experience problems using the higher resolution PDF file, use the lower resolution PDF files if they are listed.
View low resolution PDF (823 kb)
Click the icon to download a free version of Adobe Acrobat Reader.
