On September 24, London Police Service made an enormous donation to benefit students in Fanshawe's emergency management, paramedic, police foundations and emergency telecommunications programs, as well as the greater community: an incident command vehicle.

Originally a motorhome, the 1993 GMC Firan was completely refurbished into an emergency services vehicle for Fanshawe. It now includes 30 feet of desk space, two dispatch workstations, emergency lighting, a roof-mounted video camera, a siren and a public address system.

The vehicle is topped by a flashing green light. "That is a universal symbol of a command centre … there will only be two such possible vehicles in the entire city of London and community that can legitimately flash that green light," said Howard Rundle, president of the college. "If you're ever out in the community and you see a flashing green light, you know that you're near a command vehicle. It could be London Police Service or Fanshawe College."

Chief of Police Brad Duncan and his team were impressed by all the work Fanshawe has put into the vehicle. "We came around the corner … and were blown away. We knew what we presented to Fanshawe as a donation, and that doesn't look anything like what we sent here," he laughed. "It's incredible what (they) have done with the command centre, and it's refreshing to see that it's now being used for further purposes after we've used it for so many years."

London Police Services originally commissioned the motorhome in 1993. At the time, it cost $200,000 to add electronic and communications gear to make it a fully functional mobile command centre.

"This vehicle has served us very, very well over the years," said Duncan. "It was regularly used at scenes of crime, community events and for events where we had environmental issues or issues that affected a neighbourhood."

Rundle called the RV a tremendous gift. "Emergency preparedness and public safety education at Fanshawe are very important," he said. "Fanshawe College has had a longstanding relationship with London Police Service, and this gift to the college and our students is a strong demonstration of our shared commitment."

Students in the emergency services programs at Fanshawe have a unique opportunity to gain experience with the incident command vehicle, which is similar to vehicles used in municipal law enforcement and emergency medical services.

"It will be used for incident command training, radio communications training and remote computer access training," said Rundle. "During an emergency, however, the RV will be mobilized under the direction of our emergency response team, our emergency director and our emergency operations group."

Rundle remembered an emergency that took place on campus a few years earlier where the vehicle would have been very useful to have. A power digger inadvertently punctured a high-pressure gas line, located in the ground near an electrical conduit. The gas shot through the conduit and into the middle of the facility. The entire college — plus the 400 students living in residence — had to evacuate as quickly as possible. "London Police, London Fire Service was here, we all had to pitch in, not knowing what the other was doing," recalled Rundle. "Fortunately, nothing serious happened."

"My hope is that, by being prepared, we'll never have to use it again. The best way to prevent an emergency like that is to be completely prepared, and then it just doesn't happen," said Rundle. "If it does, though, we'll be much better prepared than we were the last time."