Courier-Leader photos/Paul Garrod
“It was a good turnout for National Night Out/Public Safety Professional Night Out in South Haven and Paw Paw. A huge thank you to the community for coming out and all the continued support, it’s appreciated more than you know,” said Van Buren County Sheriff Daniel Abbott.
SWAT Team members received Letters of Commendation for the pipe bombing incident in Pine Grove Township. “Those awards were well deserved, and I cannot say enough good things about our SWAT Team on what they do,” said Sheriff Abbott.
Uniform Response handled an SUV versus Amish buggy crash in Bloomingdale Township. “This was another tragic accident that should have never happened. All six occupants of the buggy were injured, with several of them having very serious or life-threatening injuries. The driver of the SUV was arrested for the incident. Speed and alcohol were a major factor in this crash,” said Sheriff Abbott.
Uniform Response had a flee and elude in Columbia Township. The suspect driver fled from the deputy, went off road during the pursuit, tried to shake items out of the bed of the truck to lose the deputy, as well as driving at high speeds and recklessly, according to Sheriff Abbott. The suspect was caught and lodged for the incident.
The Draft After-Action Report/Improvement Plan for Holtec came back after a Graded Drill by FEMA. “I am proud to say that the exercise resulted in No Level 1 Findings, No Level 2 Findings, or No Plan Issues for the State of Michigan, Van Buren County, Allegan County, and Berrien County. In short, everyone that was a part of the drill in case of an emergency did their job with no flaws,” said Sheriff Abbott.
For the month of July, Dispatch handled 6,434 calls for service, bringing the total for the year to 38,918. Those calls are for wreckers, animal control, fire departments, EMS, police, and misc. Dispatch also took 10,501 phone calls for the month of July, making the year total at 61,579. Uniform Response had 596 traffic stops in July, bringing the year total to 3,031. Uniform Response took 1,013 calls for service in July, bringing them to 5,914 for the year.
“Our office received information about activity at the Van Auken Public Access in Bangor Township. With the information that was given, five of us went to the location after formulating a plan. Without going into detail, it was found a subject wanted on several felonies was in the water. The suspect refused to come in. A deputy was able to get a pontoon boat and come to the access to pick up another deputy and me. We striped off our gun belts and duty shirts and put on life vests from our patrol units expecting a fight in the water. When we were getting ready to jump on the pontoon, the suspect surrendered and walked into shore. He was lodged on three felony charges,” said Sheriff Abbott.
“Uniform Response sergeants all have drones in their patrol units and use them on a regular basis. These past few weeks, they have been training with them in down time to stay sharp with them, used during a pursuit, used to photograph a crash scene, etc. Since we put drones into service at our office, their use has been huge in helping us do our jobs,” said Sheriff Abbott.
