BILL'S NOVA SCOTIA RADIO SITE

FIRE DEPARTMENTS IN VICTORIA, INVERNESS AND RICHMOND COUNTIES, NOVA SCOTIA
 

This page covers all of Cape Breton Island, outside of Cape Breton Regional Municipality (covered in its own page)

This page was created on April 27, 2011 and updated on October 15 using input from K.

The first stage is to list the departments by county.    Later, frequencies will be added when known.
Most of the information comes from perusal of telephone books, supplemented by internet search.

Paging: Many of the departments in this region are dispatched by Canso Dispatch, operated by Causeway Business Services in Port Hawkesbury.   Some of the area is served by a set of paging transmitters operating on 153.920 MHz.     These transmitters are located at Fairmont in Antigonish County, and at Oban, Mabou and Whycocomagh on Cape Breton Island.   Presumably many departments in the vicinity of these transmitters would receive pages over them. in nearby areas of mainland Nova Scotia.  These one-way pagers are owned by the Strait Area Mutual Assistance Association.  Other than these paging transmitters it is thought that there is no unified communications system such as is found in Colchester County.

The 153.92 paging transmitters are fed by a link signal on 453.0875 MHz from Creignish Mountain.   Presumably Canso Dispatch has a direct input to that UHF link on 458.0875 MHz.

Some departments are self-dispatched, and as well a very few are dispatched by the Cape Breton Regional Municipality Fire Service dispatch system.  

Most departments use IMRS as the primary means of communications or for paging.   For more information on the NS IMRS fire grid, click here.
The following are repeaters located in this region or usable from it.

Fairmont (Antigonish County) 151.985
Creignish (Inverness County south) 150.455
Kiltarlity (Inverness County north) 151.805
Oban (Richmond County) 151.925
Cape Smokey (Victoria County) 152.21
Rear Boisdale (Cape Breton Regional Municipality) 152.03
Hunters Mountain (Baddeck area) 150.305
Money Point (northern tip of Cape Breton) 151.985


 

1. INVERNESS COUNTY

All paging, other than that for self-dispatchers is via the 153.92 paging transmitter system.

Area Community Operations Frequency Dispatch
Inverness Blues Mills 151.925 and 151.985 IMRS (also as Sx) Canso Dispatch
Inverness Cheticamp 153.995 Sx Self-dispatched
Inverness Inverness 154.665 Sx AND 151.805 & 151.925 IMRS Canso Dispatch
Inverness Lake Ainslie (Scotsville/Upper Margaree) 154.235 Sx AND 151.805 IMRS Canso Dispatch
Inverness Lemoine 153.995 Sx Self-dispatched
Inverness Mabou 151.805 IMRS Canso Dispatch
Inverness Margaree/Margaree Forks 153.515 Sx Canso Dispatch
Inverness Northeast Margaree nothing  seen in TAFL or elsewhere Self-dispatched
Inverness Pleasant Bay nothing  seen in TAFL or elsewhere Self-dispatched
Inverness Port Hastings 151.925 and 151.985 IMRS (also as Sx) Canso Dispatch
Inverness Port Hawkesbury 151.925 and 151.985 IMRS (also as Sx) Canso Dispatch
Inverness Port Hood 151.925 and 151.985 IMRS (also as Sx) Canso Dispatch
Inverness Valley Mills 151.925 and 151.985 IMRS (also as Sx) Canso Dispatch
Inverness Waycobah 151.925 and 151.985 IMRS (also as Sx) Canso Dispatch
Inverness West Bay Road 151.925 and 151.985 IMRS (also as Sx) Canso Dispatch
Inverness Whycocomagh 151.925 and 151.985 IMRS (also as Sx) Canso Dispatch

Where no operations frequency is listed, TAFL has already been checked, with no results.

 

 
2. VICTORIA COUNTY   
 
This area is unusual in that several of the departments are self-dispatched.   This could be via radio or via telephone calls.  Where no frequency is shown it is most likely that the department uses the local IMRS repeater only, or in rare cases may not have any radio system.
 
Area Community Ops Frequency Dispatch
Victoria Iona 153.80 Sx, 151.925 IMRS Canso Dispatch
Victoria Neil's Harbour (/New Haven) nothing  seen in TAFL or elsewhere Canso Dispatch
Victoria Baddeck 152.12 Sx Self-dispatched
Victoria Bay St. Lawrence nothing  seen in TAFL or elsewhere Self-dispatched
Victoria Cabot (Dingwall/Cape North) nothing  seen in TAFL or elsewhere Self-dispatched
Victoria Middle River 154.665 Self-dispatched
Victoria North Shore/St Anns/Indian Brook 152.21 Cape Smokey IMRS Cape Breton Regional
Victoria Big Bras D'Or (also covers a small part of CBRM) 153.98 Sx Cape Breton Regional
Victoria Ingonish 152.21 Cape Smokey IMRS Cape Breton Regional
Victoria Ingonish Beach 152.21 Cape Smokey IMRS Cape Breton Regional
Victoria Ross Ferry nothing  seen in TAFL or elsewhere ???
Victoria Wagmatook First Nation 152.03 IMRS Self-dispatched

 

3. RICHMOND COUNTY      

Paging is via the 153.92 MHz transmitter at Oban, with the exception of Loch Lomond.   Most of these departments can use 151.925 Simplex as well as via the repeater.

Area Community Frequency Dispatch
Richmond Chapel Island 151.925 IMRS Oban Canso Dispatch
Richmond Johnstown (Red Islands) nothing  seen in TAFL or elsewhere Canso Dispatch
Richmond Framboise Fourchu nothing  seen in TAFL or elsewhere Canso Dispatch
Richmond Grand River 151.925 IMRS Oban Canso Dispatch
Richmond Isle Madame 151.925 IMRS Oban Canso Dispatch
Richmond L'Ardoise 151.925 IMRS Oban Canso Dispatch
Richmond Louisdale 151.925 IMRS Oban Canso Dispatch
Richmond St. Peters 151.925 IMRS Oban Canso Dispatch
Richmond Loch Lomond. Serves also a small part of CBRM 151.925 IMRS Oban Cape Breton Regional