Zelienople has joined other municipalities to support the county in the formation of the Butler County Emergency Service Unit.

Zelienople council has approved a mutual aid agreement with the county emergency service unit.

The unit will be trained and handle the more hazardous jobs such as barricaded gunmen, hostage situations, school violence and other dangerous situations.

Butler County District Attorney Richard Goldinger began forming the unit earlier this year to deal with sensitive situations and minimize delays.

“Almost like SWAT,” he told the Butler Eagle in February.

Before this unit, Butler County residents in need of emergency response would have to wait for a SWAT unit from Pittsburgh.

Officers in the unit will still be paid by their municipal departments.

With the signing of the mutual aid agreement, Zelienople police officers will be eligible to volunteer to join the unit if they so choose.

The Pennsylvania Region 13 All Hazards and Counter Terrorism Task Force has agreed to provide $21,000 for training costs.

The county will provide workers’ compensation coverage for participating officers during training and incidents.