Estes Park Police keep town safe Patrol officers protect vacant businesses By Tim Mosier Trail-Gazette
D
uring these times of stay-at-home orders and social distancing, we tend to get a sort of tunnel vision in regards to our lives. Intellectually, we know that there are millions of people risking the health and safety of themselves and their families to protect and serve our communities. Outside of the vast array of medical professionals treating patients and easing pain, there are also millions of police officers across the country keeping individuals and businesses safe during this time of unrest.
Estes Park Police Department / Courtesy photo
Estes Park Police Department’s Officers Andrew Johnson and Maria Jonoska in all of their personal protective equipment. In Estes Park, the local Police Department is adjusting their normal day-to-day activities to account for the difference in society. Something the Police might be uniquely suited for.
“As Police Officers we’ve always been encouraged to keep a safe reactionary gap from persons, said Estes Park Police Department’s (EPPD) Officer Andrew Johnson. “Calls for service have been about the
same, productivity between shifts has been the same because we’re still policing the same community, the same businesses.” One of the biggest differences for law enforcement is the commonality of masks and gloves, accessories traditionally associated with criminal activity which have now become encouraged. “Two to three years ago I would never ask a person to place a mask on their face nor gloves and go into a bank or supermarket, but sadly, that’s our common practice now,” Officer Johnson said. Numbers pertaining to the volume of calls has not been released, but the types of calls have definitely changed. “The number of calls, off hand, is unknown. We frequently get calls for service from perSee POLICE, pg. 28
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