Special Operations Division Showcases New Equipment

The Special Operations Division of the Prince George’s County Police showed off some of their new equipment on a rainy Friday morning at National Harbor.

First on display was the Division’s new command bus. From the outside the bus looked like a high-end motor home – painted white, with an awning rolled out, it has tinted windows and plenty of below-cabin storage space.

Inside, though, one could tell it was for a more specific purpose. The bus is equipped with multiple LCD screens, computers, telephones, internet, surveillance cameras, office chairs, negotiator tools, lighting equipment, printers and a conference table that seats six people. It cost the county $1.2 million and was received in mid-July, according to Cpt. Chris Murtha, who was guiding reporters around the bus.

“The technology this bus brings for the county is first-rate,” said Murtha, “We can operate out of this bus in an almost seamless fashion.”

Murtha said the bus would be used in critical incidents, to visualize a target and implement a strategy at the scene without putting officers’ safety at risk. He wouldn’t detail where the bus will be used. He said the command staff would use it as they see necessary.

Murtha said the bus would be housed in Riverdale Park because the town’s central location allows them to respond quickly to incidents around the county.

After the bus tour, Lt. Chris Price of the police’s marine unit guided reporters to a 25-foot Sea Ark police boat. The boat is one of six that PG County Police use to patrol National Harbor as well as the Patuxent, Potomac and Anacostia Rivers.

Price said the marine unit began in 2007 in response to an influx of boat traffic due to the development of National Harbor.

“It’s quite the interesting scene during 4th of July Events,” said Price.

Currently the unit helps stranded boaters, responds to boat accidents, apprehends suspects on the water, conducts safety inspections, ensures no boats stop or moor near the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and also handles dead bodies that are found floating (there have been two in the past 3 years), according to Sgt. David Rosser, who was driving the Sea Ark.

Motoring alongside the Sea Ark were two other marine unit vessels, an 18-foot Boston Whaler and a smaller Brunswick rigid inflatable. Price said the Brunswick is mobile and can be deployed in any lake or pond in the county in case of emergency.

He said the boats were primarily purchased with federal funds through the National Emergency Management Association and Port Security Grants. The marine unit is made up of eight officers, according to Price.

“We’re growing the unit, it’s only going to get bigger and better,” said Price as the boat motored into its spot in the marina at National Harbor.