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Coffey Contracting Co.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania USA
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Honored for their extraordinary service to the Mt. Lebanon Volunteer Fire Company were George Galbraith
(left) and Charlie Wehrum (far right), both of whom achieved the rank of master firefighter, and Bob Fischer
(center), who was named Volunteer Firefighter of the Year. State Rep. Matt Smith (rear) presented the
firefighters with citations at a May public meeting of the Mt. Lebanon Commission.

work on the problem.” Training covers
dealing with tanker truck leaks, weapons
of mass destruction, anthrax and even
lethal chemicals that could be found
in a house or garage. While Sohyda
says there have been very few incidents
involving hazardous waste in Mt. Leb-
anon—about one annually—there was
a recent incident on Poplar Drive where
vials labeled “bacteria” were found in a
storage locker (it turned out to be a be-
nign substance). Hazmat training also
could come in handy if something went
wrong in a high school chemistry lab.

“Regardless of the incident, we would
call in the county hazmat team,” Sohyda
says. “But now we have the training to
do something [about the problem] in
the interim.”
ANNUAL REPORT All in all, there
weren’t many surprises in the Mt. Leba-
non Police Department’s 2007 annual
report—although at first glance it may
seem that crime has significantly de-
creased. The police department received
30,393 calls for service last year, down
from 2006’s 36,393 calls. But Police
Chief Tom Ogden says the difference
can be attributed to a change in record
keeping. Allegheny County 911, which
took over dispatch from South Hills Re-
gional in July of last year, does not in-
clude non-emergency calls in its annual
report. But crime did decrease, if only slight-
ly—there were 1,070 crimes reported
in 2007 as opposed to 1,080 in 2006,
and the investigative services unit had
fewer cases—323 in 2007 and 400 in
2006—but closed more (262 versus
255). After a jump in underage drink-
ing arrests in late 2006 and early 2007,
crime prevention officers took a proac-
tive approach and in cooperation with
the school district began presenting
30-minute talks to school athletes about
underage drinking. The number of ar-
rests immediately dropped, and the year
ended with a decrease in arrests—173
last year as opposed to 199 in 2006.

Another nice drop has been the number
of citizen complaints against police offi-
cers. In the last three years, that number
has plummeted from 37 filed in 2004
to only nine last year. Ogden explains
the decrease by saying, “In 2004 we had
about a dozen new officers who were still
learning. Now they know the ropes.”
The 2007 annual report is posted on
pd.mtlebanon.org under “organization.

412.341.1127 The prayer
that reforms
the sinner
and heals
the sick is
an absolute
faith that
all things
are possible
to God . . .

Mary Baker Eddy
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