HAWAII COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
PUNA COMMUNITY POLICING PROGRAM
OFFICER ROBERT E. ALMEIDA
PHONE: 966-5835
OCTOBER 16, 2003
MEDIA RELEASE
Puna police are reminding residents they should call the police non-emergency number and not the district police stations to report non-emergency situations.
Community police officers said that at community and Neighborhood Watch meetings, residents have expressed concerns that sometimes no one answers the phone after normal business hours at district police stations, particularly in the rural police districts. Normal business hours are from 7:45 a.m. through 4:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.
Because of these concerns, residents said they have delayed reporting crimes.
Community police officers explain that when the phones aren’t answered, it’s because the district patrol officers are all out patrolling on the road.
And they urge residents to report all crimes in a timely manner, saying the proper procedure to report non-emergency situations — such as burglaries, thefts, property damage and the like — is to call the police non-emergency number at 935-3311.
That way, a police dispatcher can take down all the pertinent information needed, radio a police officer and dispatch him to the scene as soon as possible, Almeida said.
To report emergency and life-threatening situations, such as a robbery in progress or a major accident, residents should call the emergency number at 911, he said.
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