SAFETY OFFICER SECTION The Law Enforcement Safety Officer is a
To help protect officers in the field,
trained, and managed a group of officers
occupational safety, and the roles of an
Infectious Disease Prevention Team
vans. These vans were created to keep
career field that combines the fields of incident command safety officer.
During the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, the Safety Officer Section ramped up
operations concentrating on exposure mitigation and virus education. Safety
officers responded to thousands of calls
for service with patrol officers to provide advice on how to keep themselves safe with proper use of personal protective equipment. Safety officers also helped with decontaminating officers, police
vehicles and police stations as needed.
25 FAIRFAX COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT 2020 ANNUAL REPORT
the Safety Officer Section created the (IDRT). IDRT consisted of over 100
officers who received advanced training
in disease prevention, decontamination, and how to safely wear personal
protective equipment while working
with an infectious community member.
When the IDRT officers responded to an incident, an on-duty safety officer also
responded to help reduce the chance of an injury.
To prevent an arresting officer from being contaminated by an infectious prisoner, the Safety Officer Section created,
who drove special arrestee transport
the arrestee and officer safe during the drive to the Adult Detention Center. At the conclusion of each transport,
these vans were decontaminated and immediately put back into service.
During the height of the pandemic, eight of these vehicles were operational at all times of the day.
15
Safety Officers in 2020
