HSM Electronic Protection Services Receives First Line Of Defense Award
The air was electric as central station operators at HSM Electronic Protection Services worked tirelessly to help police apprehend three would-be thieves that had broken into a customer's store. Their persistence and dedication to the customer was what earned HSM the 2007 First Line of Defense Award which is presented annually by the National Burglar & Fire Alarm Association (NBFAA).
The First Line of Defense event took place Sept. 8, 2006 at a Sports Authority store in Houston. Three suspects entered the premises after hours through a roof opening and tried to make off with merchandise.
The first burglar alarm, an interior motion alarm, was received at the HSM central station around 10:36 that evening. Within seconds, HSM dispatcher Toni Brask received the signal and immediately contacted the location. Upon receiving no answer she contacted the Houston police and then proceeded to make the appropriate customer notifications.
When the Houston police arrived at the location they could see no visible sign of a break-in and cleared the call as a false alarm.
"We continued to receive alarm signals in clearly defined patterns that suggested someone was walking around inside the store so we contacted the police and requested that they return to the location and take another look," said Steve Walker director of HSM's ProtectionNet Customer Service Centers in Plymouth, Minn. and Santa Ana, Calif.
At this time, the store manager called into the HSM central station and provided an update that he was in route to the store and would meet the police on location.
After the store manager arrived at the site several police units with more than a dozen officers showed up with a helicopter circling overhead. Three suspects were quickly apprehended. Police canine units were used to search and secure the area. All of the stolen merchandise was recovered.