Rhamy reflects on active 2022

The Red Oak Police Department is closing the books on an active 2022 as it gears up for continued public safety duties in 2023.
While the police department was called to numerous incidents over the course of last year, Red Oak Police Chief Justin Rhamy said there was one type of incident in particular that officers were called to most.
“The largest volume of our calls have been mental health related. In the last two or three years, it has progressively gotten worse and worse, not only because resources at the local level have been limited, but resources statewide or nationwide have become extremely limited, and a lot of the facilities that tend to those problems have been closed, or are full, and they can’t get people in,. It is ever increasing and is up from the number of incident calls we had in 2021, Rhamy commented. “We also have yearly mental health trainings that we keep up-to-date on that highlight some of the potential situations we could encounter.”
Domestic incidents, Rhamy said, were the second highest volume of calls, and accidents saw a reduction. Rhamy contributes those numbers to the economy and inflation.
“People are starting to live on a limited income, which increases domestic situations because families don’t have the money to spend on the extracurriculars they would have normally, lead to squabbles, and worse. On the opposite side, accident calls are down this year. Not by much, but the number of incidents did go down,” Rhamy stated.
Also in 2022, Rhamy said one of their long-time records clerks, Kim Haidsiak, retired in November, so with available technology, they’ve been able to streamline the records department and make a new hire.
“We took the funding that was for that position and allocated it to a new officer. We have 10 officers now, and will increase that number to 11, hopefully in the next 30 days,” said Rhamy.
As for equipment, Rhamy said the department’s vehicles have been updated. The initial computers were installed in 2015 and started to have problems, so Rhamy said they have all been replaced. Also, in order to combat speeding, Rhamy said a pole mounted radar sign has been installed on Summit Street that will notify drivers if they are driving above the posted speed limit, and the department has added a new vehicle to the fleet.
“All of the vehicles are equipped with automatic external defibrillators,  so in the event of a cardiac arrest, if the officers arrive on the scene prior to EMS personnel, we can use the device to provide medical aid to anyone in need.”
Rhamy added the department continued the tradition of providing mutual aid, primarily with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, but in Mills County and other locations as well. “The calls have been steady this year, as they are every year,” advised Rhamy.
While the department got some surprising phone calls, such as appliances or electrical outlets that were not working, or people calling and saying their power was out, the most interesting call came shortly before the end of the year.
“We had a call from one of the grocery stores in the area from one of the managers who said a person had shoplifted something from the store, and then before they left asked for a job application,” Rhamy said.
Rhamy also stated the National Night Out event still remained strong in 2022 and keeps on going. According to Rhamy, they never imagined it would grow to the magnitude it has.
“The camaraderie between the first responders and the public is very important. We want to make sure they’re comfortable and familiar with police, the fire department, EMS, and sheriff’s deputies,” Rhamy explained. “It’s proved itself. There have been times where officers have encountered a kid and they tell them they met them at National Night Out. It’s making them more comfortable, which is the main objective. By far, we are probably the largest National Night Out event in a 100 mile radius, and we invite everyone in Montgomery County as well as surrounding agencies, and draw visitors from Shenandoah and Glenwood. ”
 Rhamy said to him, as well as all of the officers in the department, Red Oak is very important, and they want to make sure the city thrives and is at its best.
“We continue to be as active in the community in as many ways as possible, be it National Night Out, or the Toys for Tots program. We served more than 150 kids with toys for the Christmas season this year. We also did Cram the Cruiser and Cram the Fire Truck night where the food collected is provided to local food pantries, and we try to interact with community organizations as much as possible, and get out and make people understand we are part of the community and want to see its continued success.”
As we move into 2023, Rhamy said they are continuing to look at ways to get out into the community and make themselves successful to the citizens and children.
“We’ll be starting the planning process for National Night Out in a few months, and we’ll keep doing Toys for Tots. We did hot Chocolate With Santa this year, and we’ll likely continue that next year, and we’ll be looking at something Easter-related as well. We try to be involved in anything that we can. Beyond that, it’s a new year, and new things, and you never know exactly what you’ll encounter,” Rhamy commented.
Lastly, Rhamy said the department was fortunate to be in the community of Red Oak, and everybody reached out to make sure others are okay.
“Definitely a good thing about living in the Midwest is that people are willing to help out and go to just about any length to make sure people are okay,” Rhamy stated.

 

The Red Oak Express

2012 Commerce Drive
P.O. Box 377
Red Oak, IA 51566
Phone: 712-623-2566 Fax: 712-623-2568

Comment Here