New York City. 2011-12. My Trips. NYPD & FDNY

The New York City Police Department (NYPD or NYCPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, was established in 1845, and is the largest municipal police force in the United States, having primary responsibilities in law enforcement and investigation within the five boroughs of New York City. The NYPD is one of the oldest police departments established in the United States; tracing its roots back to the first Dutch eight man night watch in 1625, when New York City was New Amsterdam.

The NYPD has a broad array of specialized services, including the Emergency Services Unit, K-9, harbor patrol, air support, bomb disposal, anti-terrorism, criminal intelligence, anti-gang, narcotics, public transportation, even public housing; The New York City Transit Police and New York City Housing Authority Police Department were fully integrated into the NYPD in 1995. According to the department, its mission is to “enforce the laws, preserve the peace, reduce fear, and provide for a safe environment.”

The NYPD Intelligence Division & Counter-Terrorism Bureau, headed by a former CIA operative operates in secrecy with little outside oversight, with officers stationed in 11 foreign cities such as London, Paris, Madrid, Tel Aviv, Hamburg, and Toronto.

Members of the NYPD are frequently referred to by the nickname New York’s Finest. The NYPD is headquartered at One Police Plaza, located on Park Row in Lower Manhattan across the street fromCity Hall. (Wikipedia)

The New York City Fire Department, formally the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY), has the responsibility of protecting the citizens and property of New York City’s five boroughs from fires and fire hazards, providing emergency medical services, technical rescue as well as providing primary response to biological, chemical and radioactive hazards. The department has its headquarters in 9 MetroTech Center, Downtown Brooklyn, and its training academy (The FDNY Fire Academy) on Randall’s Island.

The FDNY, the largest municipal fire department in the United States, and the second largest in the world after the Tokyo Fire Department, has approximately 11,080 uniformed officers and firefighters and over 3,300 uniformed emergency medical technicians (EMTs) and paramedics. It faces extraordinarily varied firefighting challenges in many ways unique to New York. In addition to responding to building types that range from wood-frame single family homes to high-rise structures, there are many secluded bridges and tunnels, as well as large parks and wooded areas that can give rise to major brush fires. New York is also home to one of the largest subway systems in the world, consisting of hundreds of miles of tunnel with electrified track. The multifaceted challenges they face add yet another level of firefighting complexity and have led to the FDNY’s motto, New York’s Bravest. (Wikipedia)