Ask WYE – Issue 25 – Area Familiarization in Alaska

Area familiarization. Beat knowledge. Whatever the phrase you use in your jurisdiction, they tend to mean the same thing: Know where you are and how to get help to you. Consider the quote we pulled from this week’s Ask WYE video:

“Still southbound on Otis. Cancel, Northbound, northbound. I have my directions mixed up, we’re now westbound on…um…standby”

CAR 54! Where are you?! Here’s the raw video, click over to Motorcop’s Youtube for our video review:

Listener Adam Heuslein sent in a video from February 2013 in Anchorage, Alaska and asked what we thought about area familiarization. Oh dear Lord is this hard to listen to. The officer that found a stolen truck on the road isn’t entirely sure where they are or which direction they are going. Why are we sharing it?

• Know your area, where you are and how to get to where you need to go.
• Be aware of road conditions and hazards. This is Alaska in February. It’s icy and cold and slippery.
• Don’t put yourself in more harm than you need to be in. Be aware of creating your own exigency.
• How can you describe where you are if you don’t know where you are?

While this event ended in the driver being shot, the guys discuss how this situation could have ended differently with either better area awareness or pursuit practices.