SOUTH BRUNSWICK – Blue Angels program to help seniors, disabled

By Mary Brienza, Staff Writer
   Senior and disabled residents that live alone will soon have a way for police to come inside their homes to help them quickly and easily without forcing entry.
   Township spokesman Ron Schmalz said a new Blue Angels program, scheduled to begin this summer, gives police the ability to get in and out of the home of a senior or disabled resident without damaging the door in case something does happen.
   ”If it saves one life, it’s a success,” Mr. Schmalz said. “(The program) is a safety net for the seniors that live alone.”
   Township Council members unanimously passed the plan through a resolution on the consent agenda April 12.
   Mr. Schmalz said the township had a similar program in the past in which the police department would ask the participant’s permission to break down the door if the police needed to get in their house to help them in an emergency situation.
   Sgt. James Ryan said that the program works by putting a lock box, similar to those used by real estate companies, on a home so officers can enter when there is an emergency.
   Mr. Schmalz said a grant from Target was initially going to be used for the program but that fell through.
   Even without the grant, Sgt. Ryan said the estimated cost of the program is $2,500 and will not be paid for by residents through taxes, but by using forfeiture funds.
   Mr. Schmalz said forfeiture funds are monies and other items of value confiscated by police from illegal activities that is held at the county level. The township can then apply to the county to use those held funds for law enforcement purposes.
   ”We want all residents, especially those who are older, to have peace of mind that in an emergency the police department will be able to get to them,” Chief Raymond Hayducka said in a statement. “This program will bring a level of confidence to those who live alone or have special needs that an officer will be there in their time of need.”
   The program is similar to one already in place in neighboring Franklin Township, Mr. Schmalz said.
   Franklin Township officer Sgt. Phillip Rizzo said that the Franklin program was started in February of last year and that it is already a success.
   Sgt. Rizzo said the boxes cost about $15 each, and that Franklin Township purchased 250 of them and there were two instances in which the boxes were used to help people with medical conditions in the early morning hours, one less than 24 hours after the lock box was installed in the resident’s home.
   The box had been installed on a female resident’s house at 10 a.m., and at about 3 a.m. the next morning she called 911 with crushing chest pains, and because of the box they were able to get in to help her, Sgt. Rizzo said.
   The Franklin program currently has 80 boxes in which the homeowner provides the key which is put in a secure combination lock box that is put anywhere the resident would like, Sgt. Rizzo said.
   The combination must be entered for there to be access to the box, and it is changed after the police go to the house whether or not the box is accessed, Sgt. Rizzo said.
   There have been no reported incidents of unauthorized access to the homes of those in the program, and the codes are saved in the Computer Dispatch System, Sgt. Rizzo said.
   When a call goes through, the system flags a notice on the address, and where the box is located, and emergency contact information, Sgt. Rizzo said.
   Sgt. Rizzo said he thinks that it is a good thing that other communities are implementing the program.
   ”We hope that they have as much success with the program as we have,” Sgt. Rizzo said. Sgt. Rizzo said that other departments, including agencies in Florida and Montana, have called about the program.
   Interested seniors and disabled residents that live alone could register for the program with the police department, Mr. Schmalz said.
   Sgt. Ryan said the community services bureau and the senior center plan to “coordinate” to get participants.
   Mr. Schmalz said the police department would keep the codes to the boxes secure in the Computer Aided Dispatch System. He also said the township is planning for about 100 people to enroll in the program in the first year.