Gov. Tim Walz' stay-at-home order is in full effect, and Minnesotans are encouraged to stay home as much as possible, leaving only for a bit of exercise or necessities such as groceries. But crime and emergencies don't stop. Or do they? In Hutchinson, the answer isn't black and white as some trends have changed while others remain the same.
For example, there were only 21 traffic crashes between March 1 and April 4, according to Hutchinson police. That's a drop from 39 crashes last year. The same was true for traffic citations, which are down 49 percent, from 49 last year to 25 this year. None of this comes as a surprise to Police Chief Tom Gifferson, though, who said the decrease is easy to explain.
“That's just based solely on the amount of traffic that's out there now compared to the same time last year,” he said. “Traffic crashes, traffic citations, both are about half of what they normally are just because the traffic flow isn't what it normally is at this time of year based on the stay-at-home order."
He also said the department has been more selective with traffic stops in order to limit the amount of contact officers have with the public. What has surprised Gifferson was another trend. There were only 12 domestic calls between March 1 and April 4, a decrease from 21 domestic calls during that time last year.
“The perception was that it would increase," Gifferson said, "but actually our domestic calls for service have gone down."
That doesn't mean the trend of domestic calls will continue, and Gifferson predicts the longer the stay-at-home order remains in effect, the more likely those calls will return to normal or increase.
FIRE CALLS DOWN
Hutchinson Fire Chief Mike Schumann also reported a decrease in calls for his department since the stay-at-home order went into effect. He said on average his department fields 40-45 calls per month, which equates to roughly 10 calls per week. In the week of April 5-11, however, his department only had four calls. Like Gifferson, the trend is not a surprise to Schumann.
“In talking to other fire departments around the area, and just around the state, we're kind of hearing the same thing,” Schumann said. “Call volume, just in general, has significantly dropped off here in the last one to two weeks.”
Schumann again contributed the lower amount of motorists as part of the reason there are fewer calls. Less traffic means fewer opportunities for crashes. What has remained, consistent, however, are fire calls.
“Usually we see a couple of those per week,” he said
His team is also being more meticulous about how it responds to calls in order to avoid contact with the public when possible. Not only are they analyzing how many people are needed to respond to certain calls, and trying to keep the number to a minimum, they are also being selective about in-person responses.
“What we're trying to do now is, we're getting more information from our dispatcher, and then we're calling the person back at their home or business and trying to kind of work through some of the problems over the phone,” Schumann said. “And if we can avoid having to have the contact with the actual individual for the safety of both of us, then we're doing that.”
Schumann also noted that ambulance calls are down.
“If it's not a trauma- or cardiac- or stroke-related situation, a severe medical, it kind of appears people are not calling 911 and not requesting an ambulance,” Schumann said. “That's really and truly the one that sticks out because I think people … if they're not truly injured or very, very sick, they are trying to stay home and get better on their own and avoid getting an ambulance ride and avoid going to a hospital unless they truly need to be there. That's the trend that I would put my finger on that we can see here.”
Despite the pandemic, the HFD is still issuing burn permits for rural residents. The department will take information over the phone, write the permit and leave it in a drop box for residents to pick up at their convenience. They can reach the fire station at 320-587-2506.
