'I'm afraid it's going to kill someone': Lakeland, fire union at odds over radio devices

LAKELAND — Lakeland Fire Department personnel responding to a medical emergency inside Publix Super Markets' County Line Road warehouse in August faced an unexpected, potentially life-threatening challenge: radio failure.

At the scene, first responders quickly realized they needed a blood-clotting medication carried only by ambulances to treat a critically injured patient. But they had no way of contacting someone to get it.

"[C]rew was unable to communicate over our handheld radios while inside the building. Multiple attempts to raise dispatch and other crew members were unsuccessful," wrote a first responder in an Aug. 29 email.

The radio silence could have led to a potentially fatal situation. Some argue, under Florida law and national safety standards, it should have never occurred.

Shannon Turbeville, president of the Lakeland Professional Firefighters Local 4173 union, said if the fire department properly used equipment the city says it has had since June 2021, then radio communications would have been maintained. But, he said, the fire department doesn't have enough units to provide full coverage, leaving these potentially fatal gaps.

"I'm afraid it's going to kill someone," he told The Ledger. "The law is there for a reason."

Lakeland Fire Chief Doug Riley issued a media statement shortly before 4 p.m. Tuesday in response to the firefighter union's accusations.

"Public and firefighter safety was not in any way compromised," he said.

How did radio failure happen?

Modern buildings, particularly large warehouses, can pose a challenge for first responders, who often keep in contact using radio signals.

"It is crucial that first responders have clear, effective two-way communication in commercial buildings," reads the City of Lakeland's website. "Unfortunately, the construction materials used in some buildings block and absorb radio frequency signals, presenting complex challenges to the ever-increasing demand for coverage."

Under Florida State code, all new and existing buildings need to comply with minimum radio signal strengths for fire department communication and two-way radio system enhancements.

A Lakeland Fire Department training document titled "2023 Digital Vehicle Repeater (DVR) Radio Training" indicates there are several areas where the fire department is aware there are radio communication problems:

• Publix on Griffin Road.

• Walmart on South Florida Avenue.

• Burris Logistics.

• Amazon's warehouse.

• Rooms to Go Furniture in Lakeland.

• Metal, pre-fabricated mini storage businesses.

• Low-E glass in buildings, that provides a radiant heat barrier.

Riley said there are roughly seven buildings where the fire department is aware there are radio signal deficiencies that need to be addressed.

"Those will be our first priority to address," he said.

If Lakeland firefighters report a a deficiency or drop in clear two-way radio communications, Riley said an inspector is sent out immediately to evaluate the building. Based on the inspector's evaluation, the fire department provides the owner with a list of deficiencies and makes a recommendation. Riley said this can be with additional testing, deploying a repeater or installing a radio signal strengthening system.

Owners of large, existing commercial buildings may have to retrofit bi-direction amplifiers, commonly called BDAs, which can be costly. Turbeville estimated the cost to install amplifiers in the Publix warehouse between $500,000 to $1 million, not including ongoing maintenance.

An alternative is for the fire department to use in-vehicle repeaters. Lakeland Fire Department's website cites a June 2021 policy, "The City of Lakeland Fire Department utilizes in-vehicle repeaters. Two-way radio communication enhancement systems will only be required in facilities where the in-vehicle repeaters do not provide sufficient coverage."

In a media statement, Turbeville wrote: "The City of Lakeland Fire Department has informed the public on its website for well over a year, that they will only require buildings to install a two-way radio communication enhancement system if their in-vehicle repeaters will not work. There is currently no installed in-vehicle repeater in any fire truck."

In an email dated Sept. 14 this year, Lakeland City Manager Shawn Sherrouse wrote the fire department owns one mobile repeater. This was confirmed by Riley.

One other had been ordered, with the expectation that a third unit would be purchased in fiscal year 2024, which began Oct. 1. Riley said both units have been ordered as of Tuesday with an expected three to four months before delivery. Once these units are received, the fire department will have one in-vehicle repeater for each battalion chief's vehicle.

The city has two battalion chiefs who serve as commanders during all major incidents, according to the fire department's website. Battalion chiefs are routinely sent out to the scene of fires, but not medical emergencies, Turbeville said.

Riley said buildings or addresses where there have been previously reported radio deficiencies are routinely flagged in the fire department's computer-aided dispatch system, or CAD. This is done to ensure a battalion chief or rescue captain with a repeater responds to all emergencies at the flagged addresses.

The Publix warehouse's address was flagged in CAD for repeater deployment, Riley said. The chief said the fire department was in the middle of training, so a command with a repeater was not deployed to the Aug. 28 call. Riley said he was unaware a radio failure had occurred until Turbeville's Sept. 3 letter to the city, and had not seen the first responder's day-after report until The Ledger requested it under the Sunshine Laws.

Does the city need additional equipment?

In a Sept. 3 letter, Turbeville asked city officials to support a state appropriation to purchase additional in-vehicle radio repeaters on behalf of the firefighters union. His hope would be to acquire one in-vehicle repeater for each of the department's eight fire engines.

Turbeville said he estimates purchasing at least five additional in-vehicle repeaters would cost between $20,000 and $30,000 per unit. The union leader said the entire department could be fully outfitted with repeaters to help avoid future radio failures for roughly $300,000.

Lakeland officials don't support the union's request.

In that Sept. 14 email, Sherrouse wrote he saw no need to seek state appropriations to purchase additional repeaters beyond the three.

"Chief [Doug] Riley is confident that this plan will address the challenges with communications in commercial buildings," Sherrouse wrote in the email. Riley does not support adding additional in-vehicle repeaters to solving current radio communications issues.

"Adding repeaters to every emergency response vehicle may have potential benefits," he wrote in a statement. "However, the repeaters are not a fix-all solution and do not guarantee adequate radio coverage in every building. This would not be the most efficient, economical, or timely approach to the issue, as it would likely take more than a year to purchase, deliver, and install the units."

Turbeville said he thinks the mobile repeater Lakeland currently uses fails to meet Florida law and national standards. The National Fire Protection Association's standards dating to 2015 require responder systems to be "automatically activated." Turbeville said responding crews must set up the antenna of the responder before it can function, making it a manually activated unit.

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The fire department's Aug. 23 training document indicates there are several limitations with the mobile repeater purchased to support radio communications. "The MAJOR limitation is that the need to use a DVR system means that if a mayday is called the other units in the same area will not be able to change channels," reads the document.

Turbeville said a "mayday" is a signal given when a firefighter is down, often injured or hurt, and needs immediate assistance. The department's practice is to have all other responding firefighters at the scene switch to another radio channel so those assisting the downed firefighter can communicate clearly without interference.

"I’ve had one instance in my 24 years where a firefighter got burned and before that was unaccounted," he said. "I never want to live that again." Turbeville said he fears if a "mayday" call is on the same radio channel as regular fire response that important information could be lost on the call, leading to a delay reaching the downed firefighter that could have deadly consequences.

Statewide concerns about Lakeland's plans

On Oct. 11, The International Association of Fire Fighters and Florida Professional Firefighters wrote a letter that expressed concerns about Lakeland's radio communications, particularly in structures.

"To provide a safe work environment, the City of Lakeland may require the installation of a two-way radio communication enhancement system in a new or existing building when the interior of the building does not meet the minimum radio signal strength as required by the Florida Fire Prevention Code. The law also makes it clear that the two-way radio communication enhancement systems should be utilized when a public safety agency reports that their communication devices have failed to function correctly inside a building due to a poor signal coverage or when a building is determined to be an imminent life safety threat to first responders. Unfortunately, the documents provided to use show that both of these scenarios mentioned above are occurring in the City of Lakeland. "

Wayne "Bernie" Bernoska, president of Florida Professional Firefighters, said the issue is strictly about ensuring the state requirements are met to ensure safety of the firefighters and the public. He said the recent medical emergency call demonstrates Lakeland's current policy may have gaps and not be safe for firefighters. The groups' Oct. 11 letter said: "Although the Florida Fire Prevention Code also allows for in-vehicle repeaters to assist with efficient and safe radio communications, these devices only work when they are utilized properly and always on the scene. According to the USFA's guide, 'each apparatus is equipped with a VR that is activated manually prior to entering the involved structure.' Placing a single repeater on a command vehicle that may or may not be on scene when firefighters are expected to enter the structure does not provide the necessary 'boost' to the system."

For example, Bernoska said the City of Orlando has in-vehicle repeaters in fire engines that cover areas with known issues so the first engine to arrive can activate the repeater. This allows the first unit arriving at the scene of a fire or medical emergency to talk to other incoming first responders about what's happening, rather than waiting for the arrival of a command unit.

Policy changes in Lakeland's future

Riley said since becoming aware of the radio failure at the Publix warehouse, he has spent time talking with subject matter experts and colleagues to discuss best practices. This has led to a proposed change in Lakeland's policies.

Lakeland building inspectors will continue to do the first test of radio signal strength in new construction or an existing building. If the structure fails to have adequate signal for two-way radio communications, the business or building owner will be expected to hire a third-party to perform a second round of testing, rather than Lakeland staff performing a second test utilizing a repeater.

"There is no way for us to absolutely, positively guarantee we will have a repeater there every single time," Riley said. "If we have a building we know fails, we will require them to have their own system in there. That’s the only way we can cover ourselves 100% of the time."

Buildings or structures that fail the second test will be required to install radio signal strengthening systems or repeaters to come into compliance with state code, Riley said. These systems will be inspected on a regular basis by the city staff to ensure they are maintained and functional.

"Not to discount or downplay what happened at Publix, but fortunately for us these incidents are very, very few and far between," Riley said. " I can tell you with all certainty in the last three years we haven't had any reports from the field that we have areas where we can't communicate."

Sara-Megan Walsh can be reached at swalsh@theledger.com or 863-802-7545. Follow on X @SaraWalshFl.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Failure to communicate: Lakeland, fire union at odds over radios