Butler County fire police protect public, first responders alike
Driving past a vehicle crash or fire scene in Butler County, you may have encountered Eugene Bartlett waving traffic along and giving directions.
Bartlett is president of the Butler County Fire Police Association, an organization of first responders who keep emergency personnel safe as they respond to incidents, and get drivers where they need to go.
“I’m usually at the beginning of the problem,” Bartlett said, explaining how he blocks the road at a safe distance from other emergency vehicles and conducts traffic flow.
“Our duties are to make sure the scene is safe (for first responders) to do their job without worrying about traffic,” he said. “We secure the area.”
The association was started in the early 70s, and Bartlett has been apart of it for 30 years. He’s served as president for 29 of those years, he said.
After serving as a firefighter for 22 years, Bartlett said he developed a lung problem, and was looking for another way to serve his community.
“I wanted to find something I could do,” he said.
The association has 15 to 20 active members, all who have taken classes on traffic control, hazmat situations and basic policing. He added that their officers have detainment power.
Recently, Bartlett said the fire police directed traffic for three days straight at the Remote Area Medical event at Butler Intermediate High School in November. They also help with the Regatta at Moraine State Park and various parades.
“That’s where we get our practice in,” he said.
The fire police recently purchased an incident management vehicle, entirely funded by donations. The former ambulance was converted to suit their needs, and was bought for $8,500 from municibid.com, Bartlett said.
The vehicle has a message board on the roof, which can display dozens of different messages relating to traffic flow at the scene of an incident. For the Spirit of Christmas parade, however, Bartlett said the board said “Merry Christmas.”
In addition, the fire police can be seen using a golf cart or UTV when responding to emergency situations.
Because of their role, Bartlett said fire police are on scene longer than most other emergency units.
“We’re the last ones to leave. We have to make sure the scene is perfectly safe for the public to go through,” he said.
Many dangers come with the fire police role, he added.
“For one thing, you’re out in traffic, you don’t know what the attitude of a driver or a passenger is going to be,” he said. “And you’re representing law enforcement.”
Not long ago, Bartlett said one of their officers was sideswiped by driver who was not paying attention when advancing through a scene. He explained that drivers are supposed to treat incident traffic situations as if they were driving through a construction zone.
“Lights on, pay attention to signs,” he advised. “Most of all, just slow down, pay attention to what’s around you.”
Those interested in joining the fire police must be a member of the a local fire department and be recommended by the chief to join the association. They are then sworn in by the department’s municipality.
This story was updated at 9:50 a.m., Dec. 27, 2023, to reflect how much the Butler County Fire Police vehicle cost. A previous version of this story listed the price incorrectly.
