27 January
An eagle-eyed corrections officer keeping watch on the Mt Eden Prison perimeter last night took quick action to assist an unwell man slumped over the steering wheel of his car.
“The officer was manning surveillance cameras that look over Boston Road at around 8.30pm. He was concerned for a person who had collapsed forwards in his vehicle,” says Mt Eden Manager Kelly Puohotaua.
“He reported what he had seen to the principal officer on duty who viewed the footage and dispatched another staff member to check on the wellbeing of the man. He immediately called an ambulance for assistance, which arrived five minutes later and transported the man to hospital. Staff then secured his car in the prison car park to make sure it was safe until it could be picked up.”
A vital part of keeping a prison secure is the ability for staff to detect and prevent people from trying to interfere with the site from the outside, as well as what is happening inside the walls. In the past people have attempted to throw packages of contraband items, including drugs, from outside the prison to prisoners on the inside.
“Many people don’t realise and think prisons are dangerous places. But because of our security and intelligence measures we are able to keep an eye on the goings-on in the local area. We can often help members of the community when needed – whether preventing crime from occurring, assisting Police with our footage after it has occurred, or cases like this where our staff acted proactively and with urgency to assist a member of the public who was suspected of having a heart attack in his car.
“I am very proud of the professionalism and quick decisions made by staff last night. There is no doubt in my mind that had this officer not been watching the cameras with such vigilance and not seen this man and alerted other staff for assistance, that he may have been a lot worse off, or possibly dead.
“Providing assistance to someone in medical need is what any member of the community could reasonably be expected to do had they seen the man. But to discover him on camera and immediately alert other staff to go to his assistance and ensure that his vehicle was safe shows that Mt Eden Prison staff are committed to the Mt Eden community.”
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