By Todd South
Chattanooga Times Free Press
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Most drivers see a Tennessee Highway Patrol trooper and think they’re chasing speeders or working wrecks.
Those duties consume much of troopers’ time, Lt. Jeff Mosley said, but he joined the Chattanooga district strike team for a different connection with the public.
The strike teams, formed using state and federal guidelines in early 2007, react and assist in events from tornadoes to missing children.
“It’s just a real good thing, helping people in times of need,” the lieutenant said of why he volunteered for the team almost a year ago.
Col. Mike Walker, head of the highway patrol, said each team in the patrol’s eight districts deployed to an emergency at least twice in the last year.
Teams work within their districts and assist local emergency groups and police with incident command. They also travel to other districts to help fellow strike teams, he said.
Incident command training is the key to any event, no matter the emergency, Col. Walker said. Troopers began this training in 2006, before strike teams formed.
The command structure is applied across all emergency response fields from fire to police to medical aid. It helps establish authority and delegate responsibilities while also tracking personnel, victims and resources in a disaster.
Thirty-two strike team members from across the state recently trained on procedures related to weapons of mass destruction at the Center for Domestic Preparedness in Anniston, Ala.
The troopers learned how to handle and control areas when hazardous chemicals or other dangerous agents are released, Col. Walker said.
Nearly 150 troopers have received the training since the highway patrol began sending employees to the center.
The varied training gives strike team members a better understanding of how other agencies work in an emergency situation, he said. That’s essential knowledge since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, the colonel said.
Col. Walker said maintaining public safety has kept the highway patrol flexible and ready to adapt. Today’s officers have to be computer literate, able to communicate with people and use a variety of equipment in their daily jobs, he said.
“Law enforcement has evolved over the years,” he said. “It’s more than just thump somebody and take them to jail; that’s not law enforcement anymore.”
Copyright 2009 Chattanooga Times Free Press