62°F
weather icon Partly Cloudy

Las Vegas a good bet for first responders, website says

Las Vegas lands fourth among big cities for first responders, according to a ranking by the website GoodCall.

The site analyzed 835 towns and cities to determine which cities take the best care of their police, firefighters and paramedics based on factors such as pay for first responders, cost of living and the number of jobs available.

Only Pittsburgh, St. Louis and Tampa topped Las Vegas, according to the website, which features a number of blogs designed to help people make smart choices when making decisions such as choosing where to move and changing careers.

The fact that Las Vegas police are in the middle of a hiring bonanza can’t hurt Sin City’s ranking. Clark County Sheriff Joseph Lombardo, bolstered by a sales tax increase passed in 2016, set a goal to hire more than 600 officers in 2017 and into 2018.

“We’re hiring, hiring, hiring,” Las Vegas police spokesman Larry Hadfield said.

A new class of recruits, described by Hadfield as one of the largest he has seen, is graduating from the police academy on Thursday. The department has recruitment tests scheduled every month through the end of the year.

In addition to a starting salary for recruits about $50,000, Hadfield said there’s another reason Las Vegas is a prime spot for first responders: The department is a national leader.

“We are one of the lead agencies in terms of training and best practices,” he said.

Additional details on joining the force can be found at protectthecity.com.

Contact Wesley Juhl at wjuhl@reviewjournal.com and 702-383-0391. Follow @WesJuhl on Twitter.

Don't miss the big stories. Like us on Facebook.
THE LATEST