Glacier Park International Airport has become an extremely busy place and that requires more security protection. That’s produced a new interlocal agreement between the County and the Airport that places Deputies at the Airport 16-hours a day.
The new agreement, hammered-out over months between the County Commissioners, Sheriff Brian Heino and Airport Manager Rob Ratkowski, is in response to slow response times when dispatched by the 9-1-1 call center. With deputies dispatched all over the County, it just seemed like the time was right to place at least one deputy in the airport during operational hours.
Sheriff Heino assures us that no single incident has prompted the agreement and no immediate threat exists. This is a proactive plan that will create 6-additional deputy positions in his department. The Sheriff explains that he’ll create a separate division, similar to the Detective or Traffic Divisions. Here, an officer-in-charge will schedule deputies and provide specific training for airport duties, which include the terminal, airline ramps and restricted areas. Deputies will be able to respond to medical emergencies and summon medics when necessary.
Funding for the new Airport Security will be provided by Glacier Park International Airport.
