S.A.F.E. LEBO DRUG DROP The municipal drop box for expired and unwanted over-the-counter and prescription drugs has proven too successful—12 banker’s boxes worth of items have been deposited since the box was installed this past fall. One thing—used needles (even ones with caps on them) should NOT be put in the box. Please ask your pharmacist or doctor for a disposal container for sharp objects. St. Clair Hospital has a needle disposal program, where you can exchange containers of contaminated needles for new empty containers. Check the hospital’s environmental services department for more information. S.A.F.E. (Stop Addiction For Everyone) Lebo—a coalition that aims to combat prescription drug abuse—oversaw the installation of the box with the goal of keeping the drugs from being misused or flushed down the toilet and polluting the water supply. The box, located in the lower level lobby of the Public Safety Building at 555 Washington Road (next to Mt. Lebanon Cemetery), is accessible 24/7. Find more information and links to community resources at the recently updated S.A.F.E. website, www.mtlebanon.org/SAFE [1].
[2]NEW POSITIONS Sharon Kroner is Mt. Lebanon Police Department’s new crossing guard supervisor. Kroner will oversee all the scheduling, hiring, training and troubleshooting that comes with the job. A crossing guard for the past 14 years, Kroner was assistant crossing guard supervisor for four and a half years under Beth Jaussi, who retired this winter. She will oversee 42 regular guards and about a dozen substitutes. The police department and the Mt. Lebanon School District jointly pay for the crossing guard program. Lt. Duane Fisher is the Mt. Lebanon Police Department’s new traffic unit supervisor. Fisher, who has an extensive background in traffic enforcement and crash reconstruction, will head up investigations of serious crashes and coordinate the department’s motor carrier safety assistance program, which conducts inspections of commercial vehicles passing through Mt. Lebanon to make sure they are compliant for weight and that loads are properly secured. Fisher will oversee DUI task force checkpoints and coordinate traffic safety grants for DUI, seat belt and aggressive driving initiatives. He also will be staff liaison for the municipal traffic board.
PREPARED FOR THE WORST Since the December 2012 Newtown, Connecticut, tragedy when 20 students and six adults were killed, there have been at least 50 school shootings in the U.S. Working proactively, Mt. Lebanon police officers have been hosting training sessions at all Mt. Lebanon schools to prepare teachers for a shooting incident. In the scenario-based training, officers talk to teachers, administrators and staff about what to do if there is a live shooting as well as what they may see or hear. “Some of the teachers had never heard a gunshot,” says police chief Coleman McDonough. The sessions include watching police training videos, practicing lockdown drills and open discussion periods. During in-depth discussions at the elementary schools, teachers had the opportunity to address their concerns… like the best place to hide and how long a lockdown could be in effect (answer: hours). “We have been very impressed with the questions raised at the followups” McDonough says. “They are obviously taking this to heart.” By the time you read this, the initial training in the elementary, middle and senior high schools should be complete, but McDonough says that training will be ongoing and evolving.
GRANT BOOSTS RESCUE SERVICES The American Water Charitable Foundation has awarded a $4,000 community safety grant to support the South Hills Area Council of Governments (SHACOG) Technical Rescue Team. SHACOG will purchase a confined space communication system that allows simultaneous, two-way voice communications between the rescuers and any victim caught in a confined space. With the equipment, rescuers can assess and monitor the safety of the people they are rescuing. SHACOG’s Technical Rescue Team serves Baldwin Borough, Baldwin Township, Bethel Park, Brentwood, Castle Shannon, Dormont, Elizabeth, Findlay, Heidelberg, Jefferson Hills, Moon, Mt. Lebanon, Mt. Oliver, Peters Township, Pleasant Hills, Scott, South Park, Upper St. Clair and Whitehall.