Lt. Julio Pajon provides Telemondo Spanish Language Network
with information about Highway Watch's benefits to the community.

The Florida Highway Patrol, in cooperation with the Florida Trucking Association, the Department of Transportation, and the Department of Homeland Security, kicked off a public-private initiative called Highway Watch on January 25th. The initiative trains transportation professionals and trucking industry workers to help law enforcement officers spot national security and safety threats in the transportation environment and learn how to report traffic crashes, road hazards such as road debris and disabled vehicles to the proper authorities.

L to R: Beth Brinkley, Florida Trucking Association,
David Bowers, American Trucking Association America's Road Team,
Lt. Pat Santangelo, FHP, and Samuel Garza, National Coordinator of
Highway Watch - Department of Homeland Security.

Lt. Pat Santangelo offered instruction to truckers on when to call 911 and when to call *FHP when they encounter problems on the highways. Representatives from the Department of Homeland Security and the American Trucking Association provided information on how to report potential national security and safety threats.

Lt. Julio Pajon speaks with Univision,
one of the largest Spanish networks in the world.

The program was well received, not only by truckers, but also the public and the media. The local NBC, CBS, ABC, and FOX TV affiliates, NPR radio, Univision, and Telemondo covered the event. Lt. Julio Pajon and Lt. Pat Santangelo provided the press with sound bites in both Spanish and English.