Moreno Valley Public Safety Expo a Success

The Moreno Valley Civic Center was filled with community members, residents and representatives from Moreno Valley’s Fire Department, Police Department, and other service agencies within the community this past Saturday, March 21. As the event kicked off, interested community members had the opportunity to meet the many representatives and visit a myriad of displays and exhibits regarding public safety. Festive music was playing in the background of the event and food was available at all times for attending community members. "It was particularly gratifying to have our friends at March Air Reserve Base participate this year demonstrating the level of cooperation between agencies that we enjoy here in Moreno Valley," City of Moreno Valley's Police Chief, Joel Ontiveros said. One of the newer tools, the Citywide Camera System, used by the Moreno Valley Police Department was also up for display, giving attendees the opportunity to go behind the scenes of how it works. According to Shanna Palau, the cameras help in investigations as they provide 275 additional pairs of eyes at 80 different locations throughout Moreno Valley. "I’m grateful to all of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department and Riverside County Fire Department teams that came out," Chief Ontiveros said. Aside from all of the informational public safety exhibits and demonstrations, McGruff the Crime Dog and Sparky the Fire Dog made an appearance as they greeted the community members. Chief Ontiveros said, "I am pleased at the direction this event is taking. Being able to provide an event like this for the public adds to the overall effort we’re making to build relationships with Moreno Valley residents. It’s great to see the community get together like this." Displays and exhibits included: Tours of the Emergency Operations Center to see and learn more about the Citywide Camera System; the 9/11 mobile remembrance exhibit on loan from the Remembrance Rescue Project; live fire suppression and car-cutting demonstrations; several vehicle displays including a fire truck and ladder; multiple police and fire units such as cars, motorcycles, helicopters, boats, CERT Trailer, Emergency Response Force Trailer, and Animal Control units; other live demonstrations including teams and equipment from Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT), K-9 units, and Hazardous Device Team (HDT) robotics; and several information booths providing information about a wide range of safety related topics.