Training for crisis

Local News

Related Photos

Richmond Police Sgt. Rodney Richardson, a member of the Richmond Police Emergency Response Unit, tries to get “students” safely off a school bus Wednesday during a simulated hostage situation as part of a training exercise at Clark-Moores Middle School for emergency 911 dispatchers. At left, Joan Meadows, a state Department of Criminal Justice Training instructor, portrays the bus driver.

June 25, 2009

Bill Robinson The Richmond Register Thu Jun 25, 2009, 07:49 AM EDT

“Drop the gun! Drop the gun,” yelled the police officer dressed in combat gear as he crouched outside the middle school building.

“Get down! Get down,” shouted another officer before he tackled a suspect who emerged from a side door of the school.

The drama was not real, but the response was. It was a training exercise for emergency 911 dispatchers from 17 Kentucky law enforcement agencies.

“When a police special response team is called to an emergency, prompt provision of correct information can make the difference between a peaceful resolution or tragedy,” said Elyse Christian of the state Department of Criminal Justice Training in Richmond.

Emergency response dispatchers are trained to handle emergencies, but an intensive training Tuesday and Wednesday at two Richmond locations emphasized the role that dispatchers can play as part of a tactical response team.

The 20 dispatchers, including one from Madison County E-911 and another from the Eastern Kentucky University Police Department, were divided into groups of 10. One group trained at Clark-Moores Middle School with the Richmond Police Emergency Response Unit, while the other trained with the EKU Police at the Telford Residence Hall.

Both sessions simulated responses to armed hostage takers.

When a response team deals with such an incident, a tactical command post usually is set up near the scene and assigned its own radio frequency, Christian said.

“This training was designed to prepare dispatchers to support a response unit’s tactical command post,” she said.

Bobby King, a Madison County E-911 dispatcher, said the training reminded him of an incident in early March when a man with a gun threatened to shoot himself in his car outside a local supermarket parking lot.

“I was on duty when that happened,” King said.

Dispatchers can assist a response team by anticipating their needs and supplying crucial information, King said the dispatchers were taught.

“We also can play an important role, during and after an incident, by keeping a moment-by-moment log of the event,” he said. “Accurate record of scene descriptions and actions may be needed as evidence when a suspect goes to trial.”

An RPD emergency response team member said dispatchers also can be helpful by anticipating needs on the scene.

For example, if a dispatcher can obtain a photo of the scene from the (property valuation administrator’s) office without being told, that will free the officer in charge to concentrate on tactics, he said.

A large aerial photo of the Clark-Moores campus and a copy of the school’s floor plan was taped to the side of school buses that served Wednesday as an impromptu tactical command post.

If the suspect’s identity is known, obtaining a photo can be of great help to the team, King said.

All 20 of the dispatchers were brought to Clark-Moores for a Wednesday afternoon session as the RPD team simulated an assault on a school bus to free children being held hostage.

Several of the dispatchers winced as an officer fired a blank from his pistol before team members ran through the bus door.

“Get down! Put your heads against the seat in front of you,” an officer yelled as a suspect was taken to the bus floor. Dispatchers played the role of schoolchildren for the exercise.

“This training is good for us as well as the dispatchers,” an emergency response team member said after the training.

“We hope we never to have an incident like this, especially involving schoolchildren,” he said, “but we always have to be prepared.”

Bill Robinson can be reached at brobinson@richmondregister.com or at 624-6622.

Text Only

Local News

Standoff at Super 8 Motel ends peacefully
A bizarre drug-fueled standoff at the Richmond Super 8 Motel ended peacefully with no one hurt, including a child who was in the room with a man that police found wielding two knives.

About 1:53 a.m. Friday, police received a call about a man who was threatening someone with a knife at the motel on North Keeneland Drive, according to Richmond Police Chief Larry Brock.

February 6, 2012
Trial for couple accused of human trafficking delayed
The trial for a Berea couple accused of human trafficking involving their daughters has been delayed.

Despite Monday morning television reports that the trial was beginning Monday, it was postponed because the attorneys are not ready to try the case.

February 6, 2012
Richmond man charged with child porn possession
(Editor’s note: The following story contains graphic information some readers may find offensive.)

A Richmond man has been arrested for possession of child pornography as a result of a nearly one-year investigation by local police.

February 6, 2012
Noted author to deliver keynote address for Black History Month
Almost a year ago, Arnold Rampersad stood in the East Room of the White House as he was presented the National Humanities Medal by President Barack Obama.
On Thursday, Feb. 16, the noted author will stand in O’Donnell Hall of Eastern Kentucky University’s Student Success Building to deliver the keynote address for the university’s Black History Month observance. Rampersad’s visit is also part of Eastern’s year-long Chautauqua lecture series, and the title of his talk, “Black History: The Challenge of Living with Others,” coincides with this year’s Chautauqua theme, “Living with Others: Challenges and Promises.”

February 6, 2012 1 Photo
Habitat for Humanity
Habitat for Humanity of Madison and Clark Counties, which has built 160 homes for people in need since 1992, is seeking applicants for partner families, according to Judy Flavell, executive director of the organization.
“We really need applicants right now,” Flavell said. “More people can qualify for Habitat homes than people realize.”
Eligible applicants must have lived in Madison or Clark counties for at least one year, have a stable income, be able to pay a modest monthly mortgage and be able to demonstrate that their current housing is overcrowded, physically substandard, too expensive, unsafe, or they are living in subsidized housing, according to Habitat.
For more information about eligibility, or to apply, call Habitat for Humanity at 625-9208 or visit its office at 1417 East Main Street in Richmond. Visit online at habitatmadisonclark.org.

February 6, 2012 2 Photos
Occupational therapy dept. at EKU offers program for adults with memory loss
For local adults who are experiencing memory loss related to dementia or Alzheimer’s, the Department of Occupational Therapy at Eastern Kentucky University has provided “The Place to Be” for the past two decades.
The department will again sponsor the free eight-week program on Thursdays and Fridays, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., beginning Feb. 9. Participants can attend Thursday and/or Friday. Applications still are being accepted (call 893-0653) for the free service, which is offered in Room 100 of the Dizney Building on EKU’s campus.

February 6, 2012
Bible Belt towns in state consider going ‘wet’
In this Appalachian college town where socially conservative views are bedrocks of life, some people want to do what was once unthinkable: legalize liquor sales.
Supporters say passing the measure in Tuesday’s special election in Barbourville would tap a new revenue source in a place where hundreds of jobs are evaporating as one plant shuts down and another cuts its workforce in half. But from the pulpits to the courthouse square, opponents have been pressing their case that uncorking liquor sales would irreparably harm the town of about 3,200.

February 6, 2012
Tea party setting sights on state legislature
Nearly a dozen tea party candidates, including one of Kentucky's most recognizable fiscal conservatives, have set their sights on state legislative seats up for election this year.
Louisville businessman Phil Moffett, who finished second in the GOP's three-way gubernatorial primary last year, delivered candidacy papers last week to run for a House seat, hoping to bolster the tea party's foothold in the state Capitol.
Such a move has been slower in coming to Kentucky than other states.

February 6, 2012
Trial date set in murder case
The attorney for a Berea man accused of murder has had his client evaluated by an “expert” witness, he said Thursday in Madison Circuit Court.
A report of the evaluation of Mitchell Ray Turner, 34, has been shared with the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office, attorney Brian Barker said during a pretrial conference in the case.
“The commonwealth would like more information before they decide if they want to do their own evaluation,” Barker told Judge Jean Chenault Logue.

February 6, 2012 1 Photo
State financial actions putting strain on MEPCO
State government’s efforts to cut its spending and shift more of its financial burden to local governments, school boards and public agencies is beginning to take its toll on MEPCO, the home health organization run by the Madison County Board of Health.
Last week, MEPCO, which serves residents of Madison, Estill and Powell counties, reported a $455,500 deficit at the midpoint of its fiscal year.
The deficit was recorded even after MEPCO has cut expenses by about $383,000.

February 6, 2012
More Local News Headlines

Local News

Search Results

Related Photos

Training for crisis

Have you ever attended a meeting of a local government agency or taxing district?

Site Map