National Night Out brings community, responders together

CONYNGHAM – Community members in the Conyngham Valley had the chance to meet first responders and get a rare, up-close look at some of the most advanced tools of the trade.

This was all part of the Conyngham National Night Out, put on by the Conyngham Crime Watch group and the Conyngham Borough Police Department.

It took place at Whispering Willows Park in the heart of the community north of Hazleton.

Donated hot dogs and refreshments were served up, DJ “Mikey J” Sosar handled the tunes and visitors browsed a basket raffle selection.

First responders and community groups from across the Greater Hazleton Area, as well as some countywide groups like the Luzerne County Communications Center and the Luzerne County District Attorney’s office, were on hand.

Fire apparatus from Valley Regional and Sugarloaf were on display and a fire safety house was set up.

Police officers from Conyngham, Sugarloaf Township, Butler Township (Luzerne County), West Hazleton, and the Pennsylvania State Police all displayed their vehicles.

Notably, the Hazleton Police Department brought and displayed their Special Response Team’s Lenco Bearcat, an armored tactical vehicle.

The Lehigh Valley Health Network brought a public safety vehicle and one of their first security canine officers, K-9 Cisco.

She’s a springer spaniel and is trained in firearms scent detection. Her handler, Kasey O’Connell, eagerly showed her partner to visitors.

Speaking of LVHN, MedEvac 4 — based at Hazleton Regional Airport — stopped by for about an hour. The flight crew gave visitors an up-close look at their Eurocopter EC145 chopper.

Shortly after they left, the Pennsylvania State Police brought in “Trooper 2,” a Bell 407 helicopter from the Bureau of Emergency and Special Operations Aviation Section based at the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport. The pilot, Cpl. Kyle Schaad, helped kids into the passenger seat of the copter for photos and talked to visitors about the unit’s role in public safety.

Overall, the event was a great opportunity, Conyngham Police said, to talk to local first responders and learn about what they do.

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