MESSAGE FROM THE CHIEF OF POLICE REGARDING COVID-19 AND IMPACT ON POLICE OPERATIONS

MESSAGE FROM THE CHIEF OF POLICE
Regarding COVID-19 and Impact on Police Operations

LONDON, ON (March 13, 2020) – The London Police Service continues to actively monitor the COVID-19 situation in collaboration with national and provincial health agencies, as well as local stakeholders, including hospitals and community agencies.  The Service is working to ensure the safety of the men and women of the London Police Service, so that we can continue to do our part to ensure the safety and well-being of the community.

The following information is intended to update the public on the London Police Service’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic: 

• When the World Health Organization declared the Novel Coronavirus outbreak an international health emergency on January 31 we activated our internal Pandemic Plan. We have communicated regularly with, and taken guidance from, the Middlesex-London Health Unit and the Ministry of Health.  To date, this has included closely monitoring the situation and providing frequent updates and guidance to our members on basic precautions to take including the use of issued personal protective equipment.  We are also taking other precautions including limiting non-essential business travel and some training.  There have been no service disruptions.  
• Based on present information, we have decided to restrict or modify some non-emergency services, effective Saturday March 14, 2020.  These measures are aimed at protecting our staff and members of the public to minimize the possibility of human to human transmission of the virus.  All emergency services remain in place.  
• We are asking members of the community to restrict attending Police Headquarters unless absolutely necessary.  We will not be accepting in-person record check applications or in-person Freedom of Information requests. The record check applications can be submitted on-line . Instructions on how submit a Freedom of Information request by mail can also be found on our website .  
• Effective Saturday March 14, 2020 if you need to attend Headquarters you may be subject to brief non-intrusive screening related to the COVID-19 health risks.  Please understand this is for the protection and peace of mind of our staff who will be serving you and other members of the public. Please do not attend if you are not well.  If in doubt, call us first.  
• If you telephone the police requesting an officer attend a location you will be asked some additional screening questions related to the COVID-19 health risks before we dispatch an officer.  Again, this is for the protection and peace of mind of our members who may be dispatched to see you.  
• Effective immediately, in order to limit contact with the public and to mitigate potential staff-shortages, we may process some calls for service over the telephone or online instead of having an officer attend.  These decisions will be made on a case by case basis. If members of the public have extraordinary circumstances that require accommodation then we will take all reasonable steps to accommodate those needs.  
• You may see members of our service wearing personal protective equipment such as gloves and masks for their own protection.  

We know these decisions may cause some disruption, and we apologize for that. Again, all emergency services are fully functional. The situation is dynamic and as the information from health authorities changes, we may make other service modifications and will keep the public apprised.  We are actively planning for a number of contingencies, including impacts upon our own staffing levels.  We are committed to working with our members and the London Police Association to ensure their personal and family obligations are met while doing all we can to maintain an optimum level of service in all the circumstances.
Throughout the history of the London Police Service we have faced situations of adversity but we always persevere.  We have a professional and resilient organization that will continue to provide superior police service to Londoners. The steps above are being taken out of an abundance of caution and in an effort to reduce risk. We want to do our part in the fight to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. 

The above information will be available on our public website. We will also post FAQs and other important information. More detailed information about COVID-19 and precautions you can take is available at https://www.healthunit.com/. 

I want to thank everyone for your patience and understanding. We understand that the current situation may be causing stress and uncertainty.  We are doing all we can to ensure continuity of operations, and we have great people dedicated to this task. 

Thank you to the members of the London Police Service who have been actively managing this situation for a number of weeks.  Your dedication to the organization and the community are admirable and appreciated. 

We look forward to the day when we can resume our regular activities and I have no doubt that working collectively we will get there.

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