Due to deadlines, the regular Dec. 27 police log will run in the Jan. 03, 2019 issue

Being a public safety official, whether it’s a police officer, firefighter, dispatcher, ambulance personnel or EMT is a very difficult and demanding job -- but it is also, sometimes, undeniably amusing. Here is a smattering of the log entries from 2018 that caught our attention and made us collectively scratch our heads and/or giggle.

--Caller stated he awoke to find his clothes missing and his bedroom ransacked. He stated he made several mistakes that evening, but he was not crazy. Officers spoke with the caller. There was no one around and nothing amiss in the house. The caller refused medical attention and stated he would speak with his therapist later in the day.

--Resident called asking about how to safely dispose of full bottles of wine. She was advised to pour out the contents of the bottle, then throw the empty bottle away. Caller called back a few minutes later and stated she didn’t know how to open the cork tops. An officer was sent to assist.

--Caller said he was coming to town at noon for his mother’s funeral and he wanted to make sure there were no warrants and that police didn’t want him for anything. He was told the only problem there would be was if he didn’t behave. He said he would because it was his mother’s funeral. He was slurring his words when he called, which was around 8:20 a.m.

--Caller said there were three men by the Info Booth holding up a sign reading “Ashes" and they appeared to be giving out ashes for Ash Wednesday. (Turned out it was three local ministers celebrating Ash Wednesday).

--Stolen screwdriver. Officer calmed her down.

--Caller notified police that someone appeared to be falling from the sky with a parachute, and the caller said the person falling looked like they were in distress. The caller said the person fell in the ocean. The Coast Guard was called, and they found that it was a cluster of balloons that fell in the ocean.

--Party reported a male appeared to be looking into a window, but upon further inspection, she found he was “urinating in the bushes.” Police said it appeared a man fitting the description got on a bus that was headed out of town.

--Pickwick Road caller reported two teens parked in front of his home, got out of a vehicle and started walking up the street with bags in their hands and he thought it was odd.

--An 18-pack of beer was found underneath a car on Kimball Road. The alcohol was disposed of. (No description on how it was disposed of).

--Caller bought a pair of handcuffs online and had one on his wrist, but couldn’t get the key into it to unlock the cuff. Officer got the cuffs off.

--Caller reported a man sitting in the driver’s seat chugging alcohol and smoking something. He was chugging IBC Root Beer-clear.

--Caller called 911 and reported two large dark clouds in the sky … caller was concerned there might be a fire somewhere. There wasn’t.

--Caller reported she could smell the odor of something burning. Engine 1, Ladder 1 responded and reported that it was “culinary incineration.”

--Father called saying his son was refusing to go to school. He then said hold on and was talking to someone in the background. The call was then disconnected. There was no

school that day.

--Caller from Village Street and Willow Road area reported a group of children rang her doorbell and ran. Police said kids were gone on arrival.

(no kidding!)

Marblehead Public Safety Rocks

We read police logs daily and see all the ways Marblehead police officers, firefighters and dispatchers respond to the many crises of a small town. And we suspect that many residents might not realize just how good you have it.

Whether it’s following up on a request to see if a door is locked, helping to get a cat out of a tree or even helping you find your car when you can’t remember where you parked it, your Public Safety Department rocks. The men and women that work in public safety, in our opinion, go above in beyond in many ways doing things some might not quite consider part of their job description.

Here are just some of those ways from 2018:

They help people get home

--Caller drove to State Street (in a snowstorm) to take a photograph. When he went to restart the vehicle, he realized he left his keys home. He said the vehicle was parked badly. Officer received permission to drive caller home to Wyman Road, where he picked up his keys and was driven back to State Street.

--Walk-in reported a woman wearing a neck brace carrying packages was asking for a ride home. She stated she was out of breath and only lived a block away. The woman lived on Rowland Street. Permission was granted to give her a ride home.

--Caller reported she was concerned for an elderly female who appeared confused. She was concerned that the female had no I.D. and was wandering around. An officer spoke with the female who said she was out for a walk and appeared OK. Officer stayed in the area to ensure the female got home safely and later reported she was with her niece.

They don’t mind giving people a push if needed

--Caller reported that she ran out of gas. Police responded finding the vehicle near Smith and Pleasant streets. Units pushed the vehicle into a driveway and driver waited for someone with a gas can.

--Caller reported an elderly female whose vehicle was broken down at the entrance to the COA and AAA wasn’t coming for some time. Caller was looking for assistance to push the vehicle into the lot. Fire responded and assisted with moving the car.

They deliver babies

--911 call for an imminent birth. Female caller stated she was having a baby and was bleeding. Firefighter, Capt. Eric Ridge, and firefighters Matthew Tina and Liam Gilliland arrived on scene and by 6:35 a.m. had delivered a baby girl, who was out and breathing. Caller’s mother arrived on scene and contacted husband and new mother and daughter were taken to Salem Hospital.

Editors Note: Firefighters were formally introduced to Molly three weeks later when she and her family stopped by the station to say thanks for the special delivery.

http://marblehead.wickedlocal.com/news/20180613/marblehead-firefighters-meet-their-special-delivery

They thwart would be scammers

--Caller reported her mother was scammed out of cash. Scammers told her that her grandson was with someone who got arrested. They put someone on the phone who sounded like her grandson and was convinced to mail $9,500 cash to an address in New Jersey. She was given instructions on how to package the money and mailed it out and had the UPS tracking number. She was instructed to have the package delivered between 10 and 10:30 and to request that no signature was necessary. She was convinced to keep the transaction confidential. The caller found out about it this morning and called her mother to ensure that he was OK. While the officer was in route to the station, dispatch contacted UPS Security and gave him the tracking number. The security officer said he could see the package and was going to try and intercept it. UPS called back and said his counterpart in New Jersey had the package in his hands!

Editors note: FYI: The log entry came with the exclamation point--while we shared their enthusiasm, we did not add it.

They help out in all sorts of interesting ways

--Caller reported he had been waiting for the bus but it hadn’t come and he was “freezing.” Officer responded and reported he would stand by until the bus arrived, it was on Franklin. Another office also arrived and allowed the caller to sit in his personal vehicle to keep warm until the bus arrived, then he was on his way.

--Caller got to Worcester Airport and thought she might have left her side door unlocked. She asked that police check and if it’s unlocked to secure it. Police reported that everything was locked and secure.

--Male called to say he parked his car in the area and couldn’t find it. He said he walked around for half an hour trying to locate the car but couldn’t. Police located vehicle behind the Warwick and owner was notified.

--Caller asked for assistance because he could not get down from the rocks at Castle Rock. Police arrived and assisted the individual.

--911 call for a motorist who was in a disabled motor vehicle and was waiting for AAA. She had no air conditioning and asked for a bottle of water. An officer gave her a bottle of water. She declined medical assistance.

--Report of a cat in a tree. Ladder 1 took command.