Communication

       In any stressful situation communication can be the one thing that can pull you through. Whether you’re in a bad situation and need to bug out or you’ve walked into a confrontation with an unscheduled opponent, communication could be your safety net. Communication is important to anybody no matter their life situation. We use it daily at work and interacting with people around us. It is only through communication that ideas are passes, problems solved and lives saved. Training will help, initiative is great but nothing will get done if there isn’t some sort of initial communication.

       As a newly appointed Watch Commander in charge of a 35 man security team I learned quickly the importance of communication. I was not the typical, hard-nosed, TV-style commander you see running a police force. I was approachable and willing to go the extra mile for the men and women on my team. We worked relatively independent from my supervisors and for that reason alone I needed my guys to tell me what was going on.

       We rarely encountered incidents that required back-up but when they did I knew that I could have my dispatcher quickly call up the nearest team and they could report to the scene to help. We knew which team was closest because they checked in regularly. I knew which patrolmen were on a break or using the restrooms at any given time. All of this was due to our radios and the willingness of our team to communicate. When bad things happened, we were fast to respond. I’m proud to say that our response times and performance was better than the other teams and I would attribute it to the ability to communicate.

Standing Post, 2010

       It was a different situation when people didn’t communicate. There was a time where we had to take on a situation requiring a second set of patrolmen and a supervisor on the scene. I was already en route to the situation but my dispatcher was having trouble getting the nearest team on the radio. I sent my Patrol Supervisor to find them and we found another set of patrolmen to join me at the scene. Luckily the missing patrolmen were nearby their last check in point. We found out that one of the patrolmen had forgot to check his battery and it expired while his partner had mistakenly turned the volume down on his radio. We were able to fix the situation but it could have been bad for those two lone patrolmen waiting on back-up.

       Communication in any form is good but it’s also extremely important to communicate clearly. Our radio communications held strict to a set pattern making it easy to identify the person calling, the intended recipient and the purpose of the call. All of this occurred quickly and clearly. Following some of the confusion that occurred between various law enforcement and rescue crews during September 11^th, 2001 there was a push to halt the use of “10 Codes”. It was a previous system of radio communications, typically utilized by law enforcement to clearly communicate the intent of the call utilizing a code. The actual code was preceded by the number 10 leading to the term “10 codes”.

       Instead of utilizing a standard set of 10 codes set forth by some government branch the push was to use clear speech during radio communications. My opinion was that the 10 Code system was effective but it lacked the breadth required to make it efficient. All law enforcement and rescue crews should have merely adapted to the same system so that any branch, service or crew could listen in and know exactly what was being said. Despite my supervisors encouragement I refused to alter our radio process and continued utilizing the 10 Codes because they minimized radio chatter and the meaning was clear.

       Clarity of speech is important not only to the patrolman or fireman but to the average guy who walks into a bad situation. Misunderstandings can often be quickly and clearly discussed to remove any doubt of nefarious intent. I have avoided a number of fights in my lifetime due to a quick explanation why my opponent shouldn’t fight me. Usually it was a complete misunderstanding. I believe that whether you’re talking with your spouse or running for your life communication not only should be regular but clear and understandable.

       When things hit the fan you’ll want the sound assurance that you know how and when to communicate with your family. Communication often and clearly is the best way to avoid mistakes and escape from trouble when you can’t avoid them.