Maybe the sanitation department can sit at DC firehouses to prevent crimes while they are on runs. Guess what was broken into & ransacked?
Image from Google Maps Streetview of the quarters of Engine 33, Truck 8, Ambulance 33 & Medic 33 at 101 Atlantic Street in Southeast Washington.
Previous coverage of DC firefighter crime watch here & here
As many of you know firefighters from the DC Fire & EMS Department have been ordered on crime prevention detail with orders to show up at some crime hot spots around town at all hours of the day. It has been a controversial program with IAFF Loal 36 battling Chief Kenneth Ellerbe and top city officials over the wisdom and safety of such a program.
Now comes the story from Scott McCabe at WashingtonExamniner.com of the firefighters themselves being crime victims. It happened while firefighters were battling a fire at 1720 Savannah Street, SE:
Early Tuesday morning, Engine 33 firefighters returned from a call to their firehouse at 101 Atlantic St. SE to find it ransacked, with a BMW automobile, a firefighter's uniform and other valuables stolen. Thieves had forced their way into the station, trashed the watch desk, and stole a range of gear and personal property.
Also missing were keys, wallets and a camera, according to the police report. The ripped-off BMW was the personal car of a firefighter.
Spokesman Pete Piringer say the crime patrols are continuing. He told McCabe:
"I would like to think that we've made the neighborhoods better from our efforts," Piringer said. "It's been pretty well received in most communities."
