VSF 14.01.04: Fire Station UHF Volunteer
A Volunteer Support Function (VSF) is a functional area under which volunteers carry out their responsibilities. Each VSF is broken into position assignments. VSF 14.01.04 is the position assigned to a BEECN volunteer who operates a handheld UHF radio staged at a fire station.
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FEMA Community Lifeline icon
- See also: BEECN Program Guidelines
Summary
BEECN volunteers operate in organized cohorts, perform regular equipment checks, participate in drills, and deploy communication nodes (BEECNs) 24–48 hours after a major earthquake. A Basic Earthquake Emergency Communication Node (BEECN) Volunteer plays a vital role in disaster response by establishing communication between neighborhoods and Portland’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in the aftermath of a major earthquake. Fire Station UHF Volunteers assist at designated fire stations and relay radio traffic coming from BEECNs to the fire station's HAM radio operator. Radio traffic may include scene stabilization information, emergency requests, and damage reports, using durable communication systems.
BEECN Volunteers are the only PBEM volunteers who can be a NET volunteer or an ATV but are indemnified by the City of Portland either way.
| Blue Skies/Grey Skies Summary | |
|---|---|
| During Blue Skies, these volunteers... | During Grey Skies, these volunteers... |
| ....stay in contact with their Coordinator, participate in fire station kit equipment checks, exercises, and inventories. They make sure the UHF radio is ready for operation, and monitor the BEECN readiness score for their assigned fire station. | ...report to the |
Related Volunteer Positions
VSF 14.01.02: BEECN Coordinator
Responsibilities
- Represent PBEM professionally.
- Log all volunteer hours (your own; not your team's).
| Position ID ※ | VSF 14.01.04: Fire Station UHF Volunteer |
| Mission Area ※ | Preparedness | Response | Recovery |
| Lead Agency ※ | Portland Bureau of Emergency Management |
| Active NET Required? ※ | No; this position is available to ATVs. |
| Structure ※ | |
| Relevant Knowledge, Skills, Abilities ※ | |
| Licenses and Certifications ※ | |
| Currency ※ | Because all BEECN volunteers are indemnified, they are required to log their hours but not required to meet the Minimum Service Contribution (MRC) unless they are also a NET volunteer.
BEECN Volunteers are required to complete a criminal background check at the same frequency as NET volunteers. |
| Physical Requirements ※ | None. |
| Task Book ※ | None at this time. |
| PPE and Recommended Equipment ※ | |
| Forms ※ | |
| Updated ※ | 2025.05.14 (version 1.0) |
| Released ※ | 2017.10.03 |
Training for VSF 14.01.04: Fire Station UHF Volunteer
Important note: ONLY the trainings listed as REQUIRED are required! Optional training and supplemental resources are presented as a path for a volunteer to increase their knowledge and confidence carrying out their volunteer responsibilities. However, no volunteer's Active status depends on completing training marked as "Optional" or "Supplemental". For more information, please visit the article on Position Descriptions: Training Section.
| Training or Resource | Type | Delivery | Duration | Learning Objective |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic BEECN Training | Required | Online | 1.5 hours | Summarizes BEECN Guidelines and prepares a new volunteer for working with their BEECN cohort. This training is important for a district coordinator so they can anticipate the needs and expectations of BEECN volunteers. |
| Hours Logging Training | Required | Online | 1 minute | For BEECN volunteers to learn how to log their service hours in their MyImpact profile. |
| BEECN Journaling System and Dashboard | Required | Online | N/A | The District Coordinator should have a complete understanding of how the journaling system and scoring index works. This will help them make strategic decisions on improving the BEECN Readiness Score for their district. |
| BEECN Volunteer Position Descriptions | Required | Online | N/A | District Coordinators should review the position descriptions for the other BEECN volunteers in order to anticipate needs. |
| IS-100: Introduction to the Incident Command System | Optional | Online | 2.0 hours | Course describes the history, features and principles, and organizational structure of the Incident Command System. Knowing the basics of ICS can give BEECN volunteers context to the City's overall response effort. |
| IS-242: Effective Communication | Optional | Online | 8.0 hours | This course covers basic communication skills, how to communicate in an emergency, how to identify community-specific communication issues, using technology as a communication tool, and effective oral communication. Not every sub-topic in this course is relevant to the responsibilities of a BEECN volunteer. |
| IS-2901: Introduction to Community Lifelines | Optional | Online | 1.0 hours | Introduces the FEMA Community Lifelines construct, an outcome-driven response structure used to achieve incident stabilization. PBEM uses Community Lifelines, and knowing them will help BEECN volunteers communicate more effectively with the EOC. |
| Basic NET or CERT (certification) | Optional | In-person | 24 hours | Basic NET/CERT training provides more and varied disaster response skills and situational awareness to BEECN volunteers. |
| NET Leadership Curricula | Supplemental | Online | Supplemental leadership curricula for leading volunteers. | |
| Portland Basic Emergency Operations Plan (BEOP) | Supplemental | Online | N/A | The BEOP is the framework that governs how the City of Portland responds in the aftermath of a major disaster. Being familiar with it can provide BEECN volunteers with heightened situational awareness. |
| BEECN Guidelines | Supplemental | Online | N/A | The BEECN Guidelines is the "blueprint" for the BEECN program and covers the nuances of program policies. A regular BEECN volunteer doesn't need to know the Guidelines to carry out their responsibilities, but reviewing them will enhance knowledge and provide a more complete picture of the program. |
| BEECN on Tumblr | Supplemental | Online | N/A | Media articles tagged as relevant to BEECN volunteer responsibilities. |
| BEECN video content | Supplemental | Online | N/A | Video content relevant to BEECN volunteer responsibilities. |
