Riverside Public Safety
A History of Safety

The Riverside Public Safety Department was formed January 28, 1975. Each officer is trained in police and fire protection. With a limited budget, the city's first fire equipment was not luxurious. The first fire equipment in early 1975 was a 1953 Seagraves fire truck. Shortly thereafter they purchased a large Ford FMC fire engine and in 1979 a Chevy minipumper. All of this changed dramatically with the increase in community revenue afforded by the Argosy Casino funds.

The biggest news was the arrival in 2000 of the HME Custom 75-Foot Ladder Fire Truck. This large safety equipment vehicle is the first in the city's history and replaced the 1976 Ford Pumper that was retired after many years of dedicated service. The new addition improved the effectiveness of the Fire Division's personnel with their continued fire suppression and rescue efforts.

In 2000, the Public Safety Communications Center was also equipped with a DTN Weather Safety monitoring system, enabling personnel to monitor local weather radar and satellite images 24 hours a day. This takes the guesswork out of severe weather forecasting, allowing the department to be more proactive with immediate reporting of any severe weather events.

The city also approved and added two additional rotating, outdoor, early-warning sirens. These sirens were strategically placed throughout the community so that effective advance warning is provided to everyone regarding any severe weather moving into the area. Riverside's Public Safety operation added three Lifepak 500 Automated External Defibrillators. An AED is a computerized defibrillator that is among the most modern equipment available to help restore a heartbeat.

A new state-of-the-art Public Safety facility was completed in 2004. This facility hosts an atrium lobby with historical safety equipment on display. The Records office and 911 communication/dispatch centers are both accessible to the public. The Public Safety complex also features a computer-aided dispatch system, camera surveillance of the City Hall campus and a crime scene/evidence processing area. Within the Public Safety building several units are housed, including police patrol facilities, interview/recording rooms, the detention center, a large training classroom and the fire division.