Who:  The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, Baker County Police Department and Picayune Mississippi Police Department 

What:  Picayune "Reunion"
             
When: Monday June 1, 2009

Time: 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. – Lunch will be served

Where:  Police Memorial Building
Drill Hall
501 E. Bay Street
Jacksonville, Fl 32202

Why: The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office will host guests from the Picayune Mississippi Police Department at the Police Memorial Building. Three members of the Picayune, Mississippi Police Department (PPD) will formally thank Sheriff John H. Rutherford and the first responders from Northeast Florida who provided much needed assistance to the citizens of Picayune and Pearl River County in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

The event will include a special presentation from Chief Jim Luke of the PPD, followed by lunch provided by Carrabba's Italian Grill.

Additional Information: The population of Picayune before Katrina was about 13,000; overnight the hurricane evacuees from other cities increased the population to more than 45,000.

Forty-five law enforcement officers from Duval and Baker counties came to Picayune to keep the order. The convoy arrived with 12 marked vehicles, a command van, one Zodiac Boat, three trailers and three all-terrain vehicles for search and rescues.

Officers took command of the Pearl River County's emergency operations center and coordinated all law-enforcement and emergency operations as the area saw an influx of evacuees fleeing from harder hit areas. They also provided help with daily "search and rescue" missions, traditional police duties, staffed the county jail, and cleaned and cleared debris around the city's communities and provided local law enforcement with much needed opportunities to attend to their own families, homes and property, many of whom were directly impacted by the Hurricane.