OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — The Douglas County Sheriff's Office held a town hall on Sunday with Irvington Fire & Rescue and community members to discuss the challenges and needs as the area continues to grow.
- The town hall took place at the Douglas County Sheriff's Office on 156th and Maple where community members like Patrick Jones came to engage with law enforcement to learn more about growth in the area.
- "There's a lot of stuff that we as our subdivision, we were not aware of. We are aware of some development, but the extent of the development, no one knew," said Jones.
- First responders discussed the current challenges they have with staffing shortages and the impact this has on response time.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Irvington is a fast-growing area with plenty of new developments but with new development comes challenges. At the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office on 156th and Maple, first responders and neighbors gathered to discuss public safety concerns as the Irvington area continues to grow.
"A lot of us moved out to the county because we want a little bit of city life with a little bit of quiet. Well... that's nuked."
Patrick Jones lives in the Irvington area and is the president of his neighborhood watch program.
He's here to hear how first responders will handle this 'population boom' in his community.
"There's a lot of stuff that we as our subdivision, we were not aware of. We are aware of some development, but the extent of the development, no one knew," said Jones.
Because of the rapid growth, first responders say it'll lead to providing additional law enforcement services.
But that could pose as a challenge for departments like Irvington Fire & Rescue and the Sheriff’s Office who are both struggling with staffing shortages right now.
"Irvington seems to get a lot of double calls. Basically, we'll have one 911 call get dispatched out, we'll respond to the station, boom another one is coming in… We can't handle that at times so we're calling in neighboring departments," said Assistant Chief of Irvington Fire & Rescue, Jason Laferriere.
So, as the area and surrounding areas continue to grow first responders say they want to be able to respond appropriately and that all starts with education and communication.
"Because when it's 2 o'clock in the morning and someone's kicking in your back door, or it's midnight, and your child is having a severe asthma attack, you don't care about what the politicians argue about you just want those first responders to be there quickly and do their jobs well," said Sheriff Aaron Hanson.
Staff shortages in these law enforcement agencies affect everyone, but Sheriff Hanson says one way the community can help keep everyone safe is by being proactive not reactive. You can do this by having a plan in place with your family, making sure to lock doors, or by installing a home security system.
