Can I hire a security guard for one night?

Why one night is a common request

Nights are when things happen and when nobody is watching. A superintendent takes delivery of copper on Friday afternoon and needs it watched until Monday. A manager finds a break-in at nine and does not want the building open all night. A homeowner is hosting a party and the neighbors have complained before. A building’s fire alarm panel fails at seven and the fire marshal says fire watch or evacuate. A storm is coming through and the gates will fail open when the power goes. Each is a single night, and each is a post.

How it is set up in the time available

Dispatch takes the address, the hours, what is happening, what the officer needs to get in and who to call at three in the morning. The post orders are written from that call and, if there is time, checked on a walk-through; if there is not, the officer walks the property with the client on arrival. The officer works the night, calls the client’s contact and police as the orders require, and writes the report before leaving. A supervisor reads it in the morning, and so does the client.

What the officer needs from you

Access: keys, codes, a gate that opens, a place to park. A contact who will answer the phone. A clear statement of what matters: the laydown yard, the back door, the pool, the fire alarm zones. And the truth about the situation: if the night follows a break-in or a threat, the officer should know it.

Fire watch for a night

A fire watch is a night post of a particular kind. The officer walks the affected floors on the interval the fire marshal or the coordinator sets, keeps the log and hands it over at the end. Emergency fire watch starts on the same short notice as any other night post; the emergency fire watch page lists what dispatch needs.

When one night becomes several

If the situation is still there in the morning, the post is extended on the same terms with relief officers scheduled. Many overnight posts start this way and settle into a standing schedule once the reports show the pattern. The overnight security guards page explains how a regular overnight post is planned.