Horry County Police Department’s Crisis Intervention Team was awarded the Outstanding Safety Achievement Award by the SC Association of Counties on Tuesday.
“They are able to handle situations without people getting hurt.” Robert Benfield from the SC Association of Counties said. “They are simply the model for other agencies to look at for their hard work.”
The Crisis Intervention Team is a specialized unit that responds alongside police to assist community members who may be experiencing mental health crises. The team consists of licensed counselors and social workers who are trained to deescalate volatile situations, conduct behavioral health screenings on-scene, and get people connected with potentially life-saving community resources.
“One of our first calls was literally talking a man off the ledge, and since then, they’ve done some amazing work for the community,” Corporal Scott Calderwood said. “From reconnecting families to dealing with people from children to the elderly in all different types of scenarios. We hope we get to keep doing it. CIT is a huge asset to our officers.”
Between April 12, 2024, when CIT was formally activated, and Dec. 31, 2024, CIT responded to 2,520 calls for service and directly reached 1,649 individuals. In January 2025 alone, CIT worked 302 calls for service.
Horry County’s Risk Management team also received two awards for continued excellence and dedication to risk management and safety. You can read about those awards here.