Learning about school lockdowns
Wednesday’s Citizen’s Police Academy meeting was a pretty cool one.
It started out with Sgt. Mike Fischer teaching the group about schools and how lockdown procedures have changed over the years, as well as how much involvement the MHPS has in the city’s schools.
I remember growing up and having the police occasionally come to the classroom to teach about drugs and why they’re bad, as well as other general laws and how to be a good citizen.
The MHPS has a similar system set up, teaching elementary, junior high and high school students about these things.
During the presentation it was said that it takes a school about 34 seconds to get into a proper lockdown, which Fischer said is on the really good side of things.
Next up was the Tactical Arrest Control Team, which is a small, specialized group of officers who do a lot of physical training, but also assist on-scene officers when they need some help.
These guys are trained with special tools like the little robot they have, which they can send around a house to see what lies ahead of them. The team can also communicate through a microphone and speakers in the robot, if there is a hostage or suicide situation police are trying to deal with.
We also got to take a tour of the armoured vehicle the MHPS purchased for the TACT team a little while ago.
In my eight-ish months here, I’ve heard a few people complain about the police purchasing this 13,870-pound car for about $250,000, but I just don’t get why it’s worth bringing up over and over.
The officers said they use the car often, and it can keep them safer than any other vehicle really could. We saw what this city can throw at the officers during Staff Sgt. Jason Graham’s virtual ride along. Why not have them as safe as possible?
Last up was the Explosive Disposal Unit, which also has a robot.
The thing that stuck with me from this presentation was the fact that these guys really can just blow up at any minute. They have a huge bomb suit, but our presenter said it doesn’t guarantee them safety, just that they will be intact if they do blow up.
Our presenter said if you find something that might be a bomb, to call the police and do not touch it, because if it’s military grade it could blow up your house, if not more.
Mo Cranker will write a column for each Saturday detailing his thoughts and experiences on the Citizens’ Police Academy. There will also be pictures and video posted online to the Medicine Hat News Facebook page whenever he does something cool.