Helpful Links

An Inver Grove Heights firefighter duty crew 
is pictured here with Chief Judy Thill.
Photo courtesy of Kathryn Forss.

Fire Duty Crews
We are seeing more cities augmenting their paid on call or volunteer fire department with duty crews or paid staff. The use of a duty crew helps lower response times while helping to address the lack of traditional volunteers. A recent copy of the League’s Minnesota Cities magazine has a feature article on this trend.

Did You Know?
The titles are interesting and the videos are relevant. “Procedural Justice”, “Alzheimer’s”, “Diplomatic Immunity”, “School Violence”, “Mental Health”, “Dispatcher Stress”, “Complacency and Domestic Violence.” The titles are part of the California POST Board’s “Did You Know?” online training series. They explore current law enforcement topics and safety issues in professionally produced three- to ten-minute, high-quality productions.

The videos work well for department meetings and roll calls. They can also be very effective for public presentations and citizen’s academies, as they shed light on the difficulties officers face daily—and there is even a little “cop humor” in a couple of scenes. Here’s the link.

Additional Resources
The California Post Board has additional online training available, including their “Safe Driving Series.” In the video entitled, “Remembering 5th and Wall,” they revisit the tragic loss that occurred when two Los Angeles police cars collided.

Up next: Parade Season is Here: Tips for Firetruck Parade Safety (a guest blog by Troy Walsh)

Stay safe,
Rob