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00:00When I arrived to this role in the city, my mission was to ensure that we were prepared
00:05for whatever disaster or large-scale emergency would come our way.
00:11This week, we activated our city's emergency operations center and emergency plans immediately.
00:18Our job when we do this is to provide services for the impacted families as well as to provide
00:26resources for the first responders so that they can get their job done safely.
00:32We provided in the immediacy of this emergency food, water, we had mental health resources
00:40on site to be provided to families while they were still at the church.
00:46And going onward, we have continued to provide services and support such as hot meals, things
00:54like mental health and spiritual support.
00:58We have provided, we are providing pet therapy dogs as well.
01:03We are providing, most importantly, connections to resources that are going to help the family
01:09immediately and in the ongoing aftermath of this tragedy.
01:17If you were impacted, it's really important that you know this.
01:20If you were at the scene, if you worked in the church, if you were a neighbor that witnessed
01:25what happened, if you were a witness in the immediate area, you have the ability to access funds that
01:34will help you recover.
01:37These are managed through the Office of Justice Programs through the state, a great partner in
01:43helping make sure that you have access to these funds.
01:47You can find these funds on their website.
01:50These are going to help you get reimbursed for things like lost wages, for medical expenses,
01:57for child care, accessibility.
02:00So we really encourage you, if you were impacted, to please reach out and avail yourself of these
02:06reimbursement funds and apply.
02:09We want to make sure you have access to those.
02:12And then finally, I'll just say we always want to make sure our community is prepared.
02:16And one of the best ways you can be connected to making sure you have the latest information
02:21is by texting MPLS alerts to 77295.
02:27And that is going to get you the most immediate information when we have severe, life-threatening
02:33alerts that you need to be aware of.
02:36With that, I'm going to turn it over to our Assistant Chief Gators.
02:39Good afternoon, everyone.
02:45I am Assistant Chief Christopher Gators, Minneapolis Police Department, C-H-R-I-S-T-O-P-H-E-R-G-A-I-T-E-R-S.
02:54Just to let you know quickly here that we don't have any new updates as far as the investigation.
03:00I am here to speak operationally about what is taking place with the police department moving forward.
03:11Keep in mind, we understand that as parents, worshippers, officers within our law enforcement community,
03:18we understand the fears and concerns that so many of our community members have regarding what
03:24has taken place and what they're carrying within themselves right now.
03:27We recognize that people want to be reassured that our community is going to be safe, that
03:34our children are going to be safe.
03:36Those visiting and frequenting these facilities such as schools and worship facilities are
03:43going to be safe, and we take that very seriously.
03:47We're committed to doing everything we can to ensure that our teachers, administrators,
03:53along with, more importantly, our children coming back to school and those who are already in school,
03:59are going to remain safe.
04:01We equally are committed to safety and for those who are attending, we have volunteers within our schools.
04:10We have parents who come and volunteer, we have community members who come and volunteer.
04:15And we're committed to them and want to reassure them that we are doing everything in our power to make certain
04:21that you are being, that you are safe and that your daily operations will continue as they have in the past,
04:29as you expect them to do with the safety being brought by our police department.
04:34The Minneapolis Police Department has implemented round-the-clock extra patrols,
04:41which means that typically on the police department, we have officers within districts patrolling areas.
04:47However, Chief O'Hara has made it well understood that we and our officers will be patrolling those areas more frequently than we have in the past.
04:59So in their downtime where they will be patrolling facilities of warship school facilities and making certain that they're being seen and people are being kept safe.
05:09These enhanced patrols will remain in effect through September 5th.
05:13However, keep in mind that Chief O'Hara will evaluate information as it comes in and can scale up and adjust these patrols and extra patrols as information comes in.
05:27The Minneapolis State Patrol, Department of Natural Resources and many Hennepin County agencies are also providing extra assistance with extra patrols for our city as far as public safety is concerned and we are very much so appreciative of that.
05:45We cannot do this without our law enforcement partners and our community members.
05:49Patrols and patrols will continue through September 3rd and again those can be scaled up or back as information comes in.
05:59Since August, our patrol operations have been strengthened by additional support from state and county and local law enforcement partners and we will continue to use them to progress through and work through these challenges that we're facing.
06:15But be certain about the fact that we will be here for community and be here for your safety.
06:22As far as our residents, please remember we'll always have you in our hearts and in our prayers and we'll remember that when we're out and engaging and doing our operations, please feel free to come up and speak with us.
06:36Our officers are much so willing to engage with community members as they're keeping them safe.
06:43We ask everyone to remain vigilant.
06:45If you see something, please call.
06:48Things that you see out in the community, you're going to see it oftentimes before us.
06:54Obviously, we can't be everywhere, although we try.
06:57But we realize that with your partnership and community, you're going to see something.
07:01Please call us and we'll be right there for you.
07:05As far as this tragedy, we know that that has shaken our city, our community.
07:10Many are concerned, but I will say this.
07:12We've learned through this challenge that we are a very resilient community.
07:17We're a community of people who care about one another.
07:22And unfortunately, through these incidents, it tells us time and time again that Minneapolis will remain strong.
07:29We will remain vigilant and we will follow the leadership of our mayor.
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