K
atr ina...Rita...Ike. Within the space of thre e yea r s , thes e thre e deadly hurricanes slammed into the Gulf Coast, leaving mass devastation in their wake. High winds, flooded streets, rain-choked bayous, downed power lines and tens of thousands
of evacuating residents threatened the physical and civil infrastructure of the area. But for the motorcycle officers of the Houston Police Department, dealing with these conditions was an expected part of their duties, and they successfully helped bring order to the potential chaos. Dealing with the onslaught and aftermath of hurricanes is just one of the many challenges motorcycle officers encounter, along with patrolling the 575.5 miles of freeway system in the Houston metropolitan area, investigating crash sites, conducting traffic enforcement, and escorting everything from radioactive nuclear reactor cores, the contents of the Federal Reserve, funeral processions, and multi-million dollar energy equipment, not to mention local, state and national dignitaries.
THE “SOLO DETAIL” Since its establishment in 1909, the Houston Police Department Motorcycle Detail, better known as the “Solo Detail,” has been a vital presence on the streets of Hous- ton. Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of 656.3 square miles. At any given time throughout the workday, there are close to 4 million people within the city limits. Under the leadership of Chief of Police Charles A.
McClelland Jr., the Solo Detail has 40 riding officers, four riding sergeants and a lieutenant. The Solo Detail officers are responsible for purchasing, maintaining and insuring their own police motorcycle, although the City provides a monthly stipend to the officers to assist with costs. The officers ride the Harley-Davidson® motorcycle. In an average year on the Road King®
Road King® motor-
cycle, the Solo Officer will travel approximately 50,000 to 60,000 miles. Some officers assigned to the detail travel up to 95,000 miles a year. These miles have been ridden in some of the hottest summers and the coldest winters on record for Houston. The officers of the Solo Detail also work off-duty to escort funeral processions and oversized load movements throughout the city limits. Once an officer is assigned to the Solo Detail it becomes a way of life to work two jobs on a motorcycle every day, facilitating the necessary movements throughout the city. In 2005, the detail was assigned to the Mobility Incident
Management Division, which was created in recognition of the fact that mobility is a significant public safety and quality of life issue. In 2008, the detail was reassigned to the Traffic
Enforcement Division. There, the tasks and responsibilities increased. The Solo Detail now has complete responsibility for all freeway systems in the city, and is the primary detail for conducting freeway crash investigations. Since January 2010, the Solo Detail has written 174,073 traffic violations for an average of 58,000 citations a year, responded to 2,551 freeway accidents for an average of 850 accidents a year, and answered 53,647 calls for service for an average of 17,822 a year. The Solo Detail has been able to accomplish this while still conducting On-Duty funeral escorts, Dignitary Motorcades, and facilitating the movement of traffic during major freeway incidents.
THE HURRICANE YEARS The Solo Detail is also called upon for special projects as well, such as the hurricane response previously mentioned. Hurricane Katrina was one of the deadliest hurricanes ever to hit the United States. An estimated 1,836 people died in the hurricane and the flooding that followed in late August 2005, and millions of others were left homeless along the Gulf Coast and in New Orleans, which experienced the highest death toll. In the wake of hurricane Katrina, thousands of people fled Louisiana and Mississippi and traveled to Houston to seek refuge. The city of Houston was overwhelmed with thousands of evacuees, and its population grew by 50,000 seemingly overnight. The Solo Detail escorted bus load after bus load of evacuees from Louisiana to the Astrodome for shelter. They escorted the ice and food vehicles to several locations throughout the city. The Solo Detail also was called on during this crisis to respond to crowd control and security at the FEMA centers that were distributing funds. Little did the Solo Officers or HPD Command Staff realize
that Katrina was the precursor to Hurricane Rita. Hurricane Rita was the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded and the most intense tropical cyclone ever observed in the Gulf of Mexico. Rita paid Houston a visit, and the Solo Detail was again called into action. Texas motorists were stranded on interstate highways during the Hurricane Rita evacuation. Texas Governor Rick Perry recalled all emergency personnel, including almost 1,200 Texas National Guard and 1,100 Texas State Guard members from Katrina recovery efforts, and several hundred Texas Game Wardens in anticipation of Hurricane Rita’s arrival. On September 22, Governor Perry and the Texas Department of Transporta- tion implemented a contraflow lane reversal on Interstate 45 north toward Dallas, on Interstate 10 west toward San Antonio, and on U.S. Highway 290 northwest to Austin. The over 6 million people in the region feared the same
that they had just witnessed from Katrina. Millions of people fled southeast Texas and the city of Houston within two days. The city freeway systems were gridlocked, and the only units able to travel in the city were the Solo Officers. These officers witnessed and lived through unimaginable tragedy
FALL 2013 | THE MOTOR OFFICER™ 13
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40