Local official discusses security following deadly Bourbon Street attack

JACKSON, Tenn. — With the terrible events that have taken place over the past couple of days, the questions come up regarding how they can affect us locally. In order to learn this, we spoke with Crockett County Public Information Officer Stephen Sutton. He has plenty of experience working with local sheriff’s departments as well as emergency management teams.

“We, first of all, our thoughts and our prayers certainly go out to all those affected by this senseless act of terror in New Orleans. Not only those that lost their lives, the families that are grieving, but also those who are fighting for their lives, and those who were injured,” said Sutton.

We spoke with Sutton about strategies that are used prior to events and what are some of the biggest helpers regarding these scenarios.

He said transparency and cooperation are key factors to keeping people safe prior to and following events that unfortunately can occur.

“This level of cooperation not only foils dangerous attacks, but it also ensures that those responsible are also captured immediately and held accountable for their egregious actions. So, unity is our secret ingredient,” said Sutton.

While cooperation with the public is an important aspect, cooperation between local agencies can be and has been a big help. Our local county and city departments make it a point to work together as having as many resources as possible can make a difference.

“Each of the counties, we have memorandums of understanding and mutual aid agreements with the counties around us. So if there were an event they can pull from those resources. Cause, in each given county, there’s a limited number of resources. There’s only so many police officers, so many firemen, so many ambulances, so many helicopters. There’s only so many hospitals,” said Sutton.

Sutton also said that one of the biggest mistakes we can make is thinking something could not happen in our small communities. So, working together and having a plan is important.

Sutton also said that it is important to say something if you see something that may worry you. You can always notify someone anonymously of any concern.

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