Above: A look at what the police and fire departments have been up to for the past few months. (photos from Facebook)
It’s been five months since my last big roundup of news out of the Southborough Police & Fire Departments.
Here are highlights from the department’s quarterly reports and highlights from Facebook of incidents and employee recognitions that I haven’t yet shared.*
This month, the SPD announced a program inviting the public to Commend an Officer or Dispatcher:
who has demonstrated outstanding dedication and conducted themselves in a manner that you find exceptional and beneficial for both the Officer and the Department.
The announcement explained:
Fostering a positive and appreciative environment significantly boosts Officer morale and helps to motivate all Department members to strive for continuous improvement in their performance and the quality of service they deliver to the public.
To participate, click here.
News I missed earlier this year included two grants.
The SFD split an over $1M FEMA grant with Ashland and Hopkinton to pay for new MSA Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus air-packs. Their “older inventory of air-packs will be donated to the National Guard for distribution to fire departments in less developed countries of the world.”
The SPD received $18,079 the SPD was granted by the state “to address a communities’ unmet public safety priorities.” The funds were applied to “cover the cost of replacing the department’s aging LiveScan Fingerprinting machine”. The expense was originally on their capital expense list, so it’s one less thing Southborough taxes will have to cover.
PSAs & Alerts
Below are announcements worth noting that the department posted to Facebook:
- Coyote Mating season is late January through early March —The SPD passed on “actionable” tips from MassWildlife to prevent conflicts. Recommendations include supervising pets, removing outdoor food sources, and “hazing” coyotes who enter your yard. (I always though hazing was a bad thing.) Learn more here.
- Don’t Drink & Drive — A New Year’s Eve post urged the public to pick designated drivers or use ride share companies.
Disposing of medical “Sharps” — The notice explains the safety rules for throwing out “needles, syringes, lancets, auto injectors”, etc. They must be in a strong plastic container and can be taken to the special disposal area at the Transfer Station.- Brush Burning Season is January 15 through May 1st — Permits are required
Quarterly Reports
The SPD posted a Quarterly Report for July – September. It showed over 30 arrests were made during the 3 months plus 99 of them were Criminal Applications handed out as part of over 1,200 citations issued.
They also dealt with close to 20 harassment complaints or restraining orders, nearly 40 assault and domestics/disturbances, and over 30 reported cases of larceny/forgery/fraud.
The report also shows over 130 vehicle accidents took place (more than 40 per month) and they assisted 25 motorists. Police conducted 1,025 radar posts on 48 different roads, and conducted 989 “building/area checks”. There were also over 130 responses to alarms and 180 “911 hang-up/open lines”.
Searching the more recent police logs, I didn’t find any B&E’s between August and now that I haven’t already covered in prior posts.
The SFD’s Report for the same time period shows their crews responded to 418 emergencies, 11% of which occurred at the same time as at least one other emergency.
Most of the calls were for EMS (close to 240). The report also notes that the department provided mutual aid 16 times and only received it 10 times.
(They also posted a report for 2023, but I believe it includes a mistake. I’m waiting for clarification before posting.)
Emergency Responses
Given the number of incidents they respond to, I don’t have pictures or details for most. But here are the incidents they highlighted on Facebook:
- January 7th & December 18th — Emergency Personnel, including Dispatchers and DPW crews, were busy all day dealing with downed trees and wires
- December 21st — A car rolled over on Route 9
- December 20th — A chimney fire on Peggy Drive
- December 9th — Officers chased (on foot) and arrested juvenile suspects allegedly fleeing an attempted car theft in Westborough (in a stolen car).
- October 24th — Westborough fire at New England Spa (mutual aid support)
- October 16th — Dispatchers, Police, and Firefighters all had roles in reviving “an unresponsive male on the ground and not breathing”.
- October 13th — Rollover on 495
- October 5th — Multiple small fires along the railroad tracks off of Southville Road.
- September 29th — A serious car crash on the MassPike west
- September 11th — A utility truck fire on White Bagley Road
- September 8th — Pine tree on power lines on Parkerville Road
- August 29th — A disabled Tractor Trailer blocked Southville Road at River Street
- August 4th — head-on motor vehicle crash on Woodland Road
Personnel Comings/Goings and Appreciation
Both departments used Facebook to share congratulations and recognitions:
- This month, Jeremy Parkinson was promoted from firefighter to Lieutenant.
- Officer Jim Gallagher left the SPD this month after nearly 12 years of service. He was congratulated on his new position for Milford.
- Several members of the SFD were jus recognized for “caring, respectful, and efficient teamwork during a difficult incident” on Valley Road this fall.
- A few weeks ago, Probationary Firefighter/Paramedic Tiffany Martinez joined the SFD.
- In December, new Student Officer Theo Davis was sworn in.
- In November, Officer Julie Fontana became the newest DARE Officer for Southborough schools (alongside Off. Jeff Norton). (It followed her becoming the School Resource Officer over the summer.)
- In October, Sgt. Tim Slatkavitz was recognized by the Select Board for his 25+ years of service
- Tom Rock was promoted to Sergeant in October.
- In September, the SPD congratulated Sgt Heath Widdis for his retirement after 26 years on their force.
- Steve Neivert was promoted from Detective to Sgt in September.
Community Service
Of course, staff also participated in non-emergency activities in the community:
- SPD visited Finn and Neary classrooms to read to students
- SPD ran a successful “Fill-a-Cruiser” collection for the Food Pantry
- SPD presented Special Olympics medals at a skills clinic’s ceremony
- SPD & SFD helped out at the Senior Center’s Holiday Party
- SPD & SFD followed through on a Finn Fall Fest raffle prizes – rides to school in a Police Car and Fire Truck
- SPD presented Halloween Safety Tips to Woodward students
- SPD & SFD cheered on Woodward students in their annual Color Run.
- SPD took part in the Finn Fall Festival
- SPD stopped by an Algonquin DECA carwash
- SPD held its annual Heritage Day booth and helped at Summer Nights
- SPD raised funds for Breast Cancer research and the Jimmy Fund
- SPD rode in a Salute To Veterans ride and alongside Pan Mass Challenge cyclists
*Since my August 1st update, I have covered plenty of other public safety news (which I didn’t duplicate above.) You can find those stories, here.
