***PRESS RELEASE***
Please visit the City of Ridgecrest website at https://ridgecrest-ca.gov/ and click on the “EMERGENCY ALERT” link on the top left corner of the page. This will allow you to access information on the COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus). There are also links attached to the Public Advisory to the California Department of Public Health, Kern Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Public Safety Response to COVID-19.
The Ridgecrest Police Department, working in conjunction with Ridgecrest Regional Hospital and other Kern
County law enforcement agencies, is implementing new procedures in response to the COVID-19 (coronavirus)
pandemic. The purpose is to ensure the health and safety of our community as public safety is our number one
priority. RPD and other law enforcement agencies have procedures in place to provide mutual aid on a local and
state level should a law enforcement agency have staffing issues due to illness.
We are requesting the public’s cooperation when they call emergency services to alert us if they have symptoms
consistent with COVID-19 so we can have an appropriate response.
RPD Officers will respond to any life-threatening and/or emergency calls. However, if a member of the public is
calling to report an incident that is not life-threatening and not in-progress, we will be taking phone reports. We
will still respond to the area as needed to address any other portions of the investigation, but will be limiting
contact with the public for the safety and protection of community members and peace officers. For non emergencies, please contact the Ridgecrest Police Department Communications Center at 760-499-5100.
RPD will be cancelling our participation in all community events at least through the month of March. All
civilian ride-a-longs will be canceled as well.
The Kern County Public Health Department has not reported any confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Kern County.
We encourage people to monitor the latest impacts of coronavirus by visiting the following websites from these
trusted sources:
https://www.cdph.ca.gov/
https://kernpublichealth.com/
https://cdc.gov/coronavirus/
The Ridgecrest Police Department is monitoring the situation closely while working in partnership with our local,
state, and federal partners to ensure the safety of our community and employees.
Jed McLaughlin, Chief of Police
Thursday, March 12, 2020.
