El Dorado County Sheriff's Office 2017 Annual Report | Page 19

Explosive Ordinance Disposal

The Explosive Ordinance Disposal Unit’s role

with the Sheriff’s Office can best be described

as “hazard mitigation.” EOD handles all types of

incidents related to explosives, from

ammunition inspections to found explosives.

Found explosives might be deteriorated

blasting agents such as old dynamite, or

improvised explosive devices. EOD personnel

are trained to disable incendiary and improvised

explosive devices and a wide array of hazardous

material situations. Additionally, they have been

trained to operate in all types of conditions from

high-angle cliffs to confined spaces.

The EOD unit also provides services to other specialty units within the Sheriff’s Office beyond just explosive devices. Members of this unit are trained to operate a robot that has been used

numerous times to assist SWAT in remotely breaching, entering and clearing buildings. This robot is also capable of performing forward observation through a camera on the front of the robot and a remote observation screen, Break and Rake access to clear debris paths, vehicle disabling, and downed officer retrieval.

EOD is also able to assist SWAT with explosive breaching in order to rapidly access a structure or to create gun ports and man-ways. Video feed

from the robot can be recorded for documentation of critical incidents. This video

can be vital in determining what resources are needed and where. The robot can also assist CNT by delivering throw phones or negotiations can be carried out directly through the robot. EOD assists detectives and CSI with investigations in their particular field of expertise, including post-blast investigation.

In 2017, there were a total of 28 callouts for EOD.

Some of the dangerous items removed this year

include a 1940’s era blasting cap, some 1950’s

era dynamite, and WWII era hand grenades. The

squad also experienced a record of eight call

outs during the month of August.

EOD can often be found at community events.

These events give the team an opportunity to

engage, interact and educate with the adults and

youth in the community. These events include

Red Ribbon Week, Explorers training and the

Citizen’s Academy.

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3

2

1

5

3

1

2

Recoveries

Suspicious Packages

Hoax Device

Post Blast

SWAT Assist

Technical Assist/Consultation

Search Warrant

Event Standby

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(Left) Real camera footage stills taken by the EOD robot.