Police, fire make changes during COVID-19 outbreak

The virus pandemic that’s closed most everything to the public and has people hunkering down at home has public safety workers trying harder to protect the communities they serve and themselves.

Officers, firefighters and paramedics come into contact with different people every day, putting themselves, their partners and their families at risk of contracting COVID-19, a potentially deadly virus that’s sweeping the state and the nation. That means local police and fire departments have had to implement new protocols to better protect personnel, so they can continue to do their jobs of keeping crime off the streets and rendering aid to the helpless.

"Your first responders are coming into contact with tons of different people, sometimes not by choice," said Matt Fillenwarth, assistant chief at the Greenwood Police Department.  "Your first responders may get this virus, just by the nature of the job."

Safety first

[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]

As the coronavirus continues to sweep the state, local public safety officials have put sweeping changes in place.

Changes include cleaning everything, from keyboards and TV remotes at the stations to the steering wheels of the public safety vehicles every day. They’re also wearing personal protective equipment, such as masks, gowns, protective goggles and gloves when responding to in-person calls where there is suspected COVID-19 exposure.

The Bargersville Community Fire Department has a designated COVID-19 isolation ambulance, said Mike Pruitt, deputy chief of the fire department. They have made several runs in the last week where there were COVID-19 or flu-like symptoms present, he said.

"Our run numbers are low, but we’re getting more cases of flu-like symptoms," Pruitt said.

After every call, Bargersville first responders spray down the ambulance with a gas-powered bleach mister the department recently bought to speed up decontamination and keep the ambulance in use.

For all local agencies, when a call is dispatched, the dispatcher asks the caller a series of screening questions looking for symptoms of the virus, so first responders can know what they’re dealing with before going in.

At the house, one firefighter will stand outside the front door and ask the patient inside another series of questions about their health before entering.

"As long as you use your PPE (personal protective equipment), and you limit your time with the patient, the chance of being exposed to the virus is very minimal," said Darin Hoggatt, Greenwood fire chief.

But even with the added precautions of gathering information before entering a residence, first responders will not hesitate to give immediate care in the case of an emergency. It’s still their job, public safety officials agreed.

"We’re not going to withhold advanced care just because that person may have the coronavirus," Pruitt said. "We will still do what we’ve always done."

Local law enforcement is taking similar precautions, with dispatch screening for any COVID-19 symptoms before officers arrive on scene.

“We took an oath to protect and serve, so we’re going to do everything we can to wear the proper gloves, the masks, sanitize our hands, all those things," said Kirby Cochran, Franklin police chief.

Also as a precaution, Franklin police are letting the fire department take the lead on all medical runs. Police will respond to a house during an emergency, but will not go inside unless it is necessary, Cochran said. 

Policing looks different

Local police agencies are changing the way they make arrests and respond to certain crimes to limit exposure to officers and those who work at the Johnson County jail.

"We’ve really decided on warrants, unless it’s a violent offender, we’re not really taking the offender to the jail," Cochran said.

For now, only certain crimes will result in immediately being booked into the jail. For less pressing crimes, such as non-violent theft or any crime that does not pose an immediate danger to the community, the paperwork will be filed for an arrest, but the offender will not be booked into jail right away. This is an agreement between the sheriff’s office, the prosecutor and all local police agencies, Johnson County Sheriff Duane Burgess said.

"That has kept the jail population down," he said. "We were at 400 (inmates) last month, and we’re now at 320."

The sheriff’s office has a list of the crimes that do and don’t warrant immediate jail time at the moment, but Burgess would not publicly share that list, he said.

Still, law enforcement officials want to be clear, not sending people to jail right away does not mean police are relaxing on crime, Fillenwarth said. 

"I think some people kind of get that feeling, ‘Oh I can go commit a crime and the cops won’t do anything,’" he said. "Oh no, you’re going to answer for it, I promise that, but you might not answer today."

The jail population will increase again once the pandemic ends, Burgess said.

Police agencies are only doing in-person runs for urgent crimes, such as domestic disputes, for example. Police are investigating non-emergency crimes, such as petty thefts, fraud, property damage or noise complaints, remotely.

This is a change, Cochran said. Officers would typically respond in person to most calls, no matter the urgency, he said.

"We’re such a service-friendly department, we go to the house for everything, but we’ve had to reduce that," Cochran said.

Police officers continue to do their jobs as effectively as always, despite the operational changes, he said.

"Our job isn’t stopping," he said. "What happens to the individual after they commit a crime has just changed a little bit."

Policing an executive order

Gov. Eric Holcomb signed a mandatory statewide stay-at-home order that began Wednesday. Only essential travel to work, grocery stores and pharmacies is permitted until April 7, but local law enforcement are not actively stopping people for violating the order.

It is extremely difficult and time consuming to police where people are going, Burgess said.

"I’m not going to set up a roadblock to ask every single person, ‘Hey, where are you going?’" Burgess said. "They’re not going to tell me they’re going to Jimmy’s house to play baseball anyway."

Local agencies instructed officers to not pull over cars on the road just to see if they are violating the stay-at-home order. Violating the travel ban is a misdemeanor, and people will likely only be arrested on that charge if they are arrested for committing other crimes, such as driving under the influence, said Captain Scott Carter of the Franklin Police Department.

An Indianapolis man was arrested Wednesday night in Franklin on various charges, including walking along the railroad, resisting arrest, giving false information and violating the travel order. The man was endangering himself, behaving oddly and wasn’t listening the officer’s questions, which is why he was arrested, Carter said.

"We were concerned for his safety. He was just acting … not right. He would run and then he would crawl. He didn’t give us correct information," Carter said.

Keeping frontlines healthy

Employees at the county’s police and fire departments are screened every day for COVID-19 symptoms, which include dry cough, fever and sore throat.

Department heads are asking that they actively take care of themselves at home, and not come in if they feel sick, considering they’re on the frontlines and could infect any number of people.

At the stations, personnel are spread out to ensure social distancing, and hand sanitizer is readily available.

"No one wants to be the person that’s impacted by COVID-19," Cochran said. "It’s got us a little more on our toes."

It is public safety’s job to prepare for the worst. Local agencies and the sheriff’s office have plans in place to move staff around or ask other agencies in the county for assistance if multiple personnel are exposed to the virus.

"The first thing we’re going to do is look to other fire departments in the county to help us," Pruitt said.

At the Franklin Police Department, administrative staff have been asked to wear their uniforms so they’re ready to go to work if needed, Cochran said.

That can also be done at the sheriff’s office, Burgess said.

"We’ll shuffle people around," he said. "If I have to pull people off street duty to work in the jail, I will."

In public safety, a big part of the job is taking risks, including facing the unknowns surrounding the coronavirus, public safety officials said.

"I’m not getting a whole lot of sleep right now because I can’t shut my mind off of it," Burgess said. "I try to not live by what-if’s, but you have to at this time."

The public looks to law enforcement and first responders to protect them, even during a crisis. So it’s also their job to remain calm, Pruitt said. 

"If we can’t keep ourselves calm, then that’s a problem," Pruitt said.