Georgia Sheriffs To Add Additional Safety Training for High-Speed Pursuits
The Georgia Department of Public Safety wants to lower the number of car crashes involving police and other emergency responders.
Through a state grant, sheriff’s offices across Georgia will be able to use a pair of state-of-the-art driving simulators aimed at training officers in high-speed pursuits.
Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills, who serves as president of the Georgia Sheriffs Association, says the simulators will be like playing an advanced video game.
“It’s no different than a flight simulator. You get into a compartment that has gear shift sounds, the noises, the video screen in front of you and even on your sides and it’s just like driving a car.”
Sills says the simulators will tour the state and add to existing safety training.
“Georgia law allows us to violate certain traffic laws but with due regard we can speed on the way to an emergency if we have our lights and siren on but that doesn’t mean we can bust through a red light.”
According to state figures, there were nearly 2,500 collisions involving on-duty officers last year. Those resulted in nearly 400 bystanders being injured, and three deaths.
The new training simulators will be rolled out next month.
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