Disaster Squad

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## Briefing

A TV news crew dubbed the Disaster Squad causes problems for the CHP, when they seem to always appear whenever there's trouble. Jon falls in love with a divorcee when her son keeps getting lost on purpose.

## Report

Two men are arguing, Hilmer and Becker. Becker has fired Hilmer for ruining a concrete mixer for letting the concrete harden. Hilmer tells him he'll show him wrecked equipment and goes on the rampage with his red pickup. Every car he sees he rams and then ends up on the freeway. An APB goes out regarding the red pickup and Jon and Ponch respond.

Jon radios in that they're in pursuit of the suspect. They chase after him as he leaves car upon car wrecked. He eventually comes to a stop when he hits another car and rolls over, but ends up on his wheels regardless. Jon goes to the driver but he refuses help and is carrying a crowbar. Ponch radios it in. A news van dubbed the 'Disaster Squad' arrive and goad the man on. Jon tries to calm the man down but he won't have it and he keeps backing away from Jon. Jon is worried since the driver is bleeding. They end up on the overpass and the man threatens to jump, Lee shouts at the man to jump. Ponch tells him to stop it and while he confronts Lee who trips over and Ponch lifts him back up. He tells him it's a crime to aid a suicide and incite a crowd and tells him to keep his mouth shut or he'll put him in the slammer. Jon attempts to talk Hilmer out of jumping. Becker arrives and tells Hilmer he can have his job back, it turns he's his brother in law. Becker tells everyone about the cement mixer being ruined outside a cocktail lounge. Hilmer blames Becker and Becker tells Ponch he fired him because of it. Becker offers Hilmer his job back on one condition, he doesn't jump. Hilmer accepts and asks Jon to help him back up. Hilmer tells Becker he should have let him jump now that he's in trouble with the law. Becker tells him he would still owe him for the cement mixer. Hilmer tells him it's his fault the cement mixer got ruined since he was drinking with him. Becker remembers he was drinking with him and promises to bail him out since he's his brother in law. Becker wrenches Hilmer from Jon's grasp. Hilmer tells Jon his car insurance is ruined now.

Cahill says hi to Ponch and Ponch returns with a depressed hi. Sindy quizzes Ponch on why he's so downbeat. Jon tells her it's the TV new crew.

Outside there's a small boy tinkering with Jon's bike, when he gets up he hits his head on the handlebar. He wants to ride on their bikes. Ponch tells him he can't without a helmet. The boy tells them they have to take him home because he's lost. The boy is taken back home in a patrol car along with Jon and Ponch escorting behind. The boy looks out the rear window to make sure jon and Ponch are still there. They arrive at his home. The boy gets out and tells Fritz he can go now but tells Jon and Ponch they have to stay.

The boys mother, Ellen comes out of the house and the boys name is Chris, she tells him not again and apologises to Jon and Ponch. It's not the first time he's brought home motorcyclists. Chris gets excited and wants to show them his bike. Ellen asks if they have a couple of minutes to spare, Jon tells her they do.

Chris unveils his bike, it's a minature dirt bike, Ellen tells them her ex-husband bought it for him and he takes a ride around the yard with it. Jon asks Ellen how long she's been divorced.

At briefing, Getraer tells everyone to be courteous, there's groans and moans from the room. Getraer tells them no matter what happens they have to smile and grit their teeth until it hurts. Ponch asks about the Disaster Squad, Jon tells him they're there all the time sometimes before they even get there. Ponch tells Getraer they can't do things by the book while they're there, Getraer asks him when he's ever gone by the book.

On patrol Ponch is talking about what happened at briefing but Jon's mind is on Ellen. He asks Ponch if he's free on Sunday and Ponch knows he's after a favour. Jon tells Ponch that he wants to take Ellen on a picnic and he's invited. Ponch guesses that he's there to babysit Chris while Jon does his thing. Ponch starts his bike and with venom tells Jon he's going to the baseball game on Sunday and rides off. Ponch doesn't think he should waste his Sunday on him. Jon chases after him. Ponch has a cheesy grin on his face that quickly vanishes when Jon catches up. Ponch tells Jon how he would like to spend his Sunday.

A radio call goes out directly to them regarding a wrong way driver on the freeway. The Disaster Squad are listening in on the broadcast and head out.

They spot the pickup but he's not going the wrong way, he's driving in reverse. A van crashes into the car in front cause that car to cut off the pickup. They head to the driver to find out what's going on just as the new crew arrives. Lee interviews the driver and he tells him his car wouldn't go forward and he's late for a wedding and he's the best man. Jon tells the news crew to move back since they're interfering. Lee accuses the CHP of not liking minorities especially ones in blue tuxes. He then asks Jon what the charges are and Jon tells him and then tells him his equipment is causing an obstruction. Ponch gets angry and tells the crew to leave. Lee notices that petrol is leaking from a car and a flare is on the ground. He kicks the flare onto the petrol and it catches fire, he tells his friend to film it. The car explodes and the cameraman goes in for a closer look, but debris from the car rains down on him and he catches fire. Jon and Ponch notice it and run to his aid.

On patrol, Sindy honks at the pair and they get off their bikes. Sindy wants them to see her new boyfriend, it's Chris. Sindy tells them that they're the only ones who knows where he lives.

It's Sunday and Ponch is taking Chris around a dirt track while Jon is sipping wine with Ellen. Jon wants to see her again and she agrees. Jon leans in to kiss her but Chris interrupts them. Chris asks if he can take part in a race, Ellen is reluctant but relents.

Chris takes the lead in the race but is pushed off course. Chris is angry and wants to punch the rider when he gets off his bike, Ponch doesn't like his attitude and tells him he can't be his partner like that. Chris apologises to Ponch.

Ponch spots the Disaster Squad on the shoulder. He stops and tells Jon to follow his lead. Ponch asks why they've stopped and Lee tells him the van overheated. Jon tells him he's not supposed to park in an emergency lane unless there's an emergency. Lee tells his crew they're going to teach Ponch a lesson.

A news broadcast goes out showing Ponch shoving Lee to the ground and calling him a name. Chris is watching the broadcast and can't understand why Ponch would do something like that when he told him it was wrong. Chris starts crying and then goes out on his bike, much to the dismay of his mother.

Ponch is explaining himself to Getraer. He tells them the video of him shoving him was reversed and his words were edited to make it look bad. Getraer chews him out but then tells him he believes Ponch. Cahill interrupts the meeting to tell Jon, Ellen is on the phone. Jon takes the call in the office and tells Ponch Chris ran away when he saw the broadcast.

They head out to a place Ellen said Chris and his father used to go to.

Fritz spots Chris and radios in.

Chris has traveled to the reservoir and falls in. Jon and Ponch try to catch him passing by but he's too far away. Jon and Ponch ride further down and try to catch him, but when Ponch tries to grab him he falls in. Jon gets back on his motor and follows them where the current is taking them. Jon waits for Ponch to appear and throws out a hose to him. Ponch catches it and Jon pulls them both in.

The Disaster Squad arrives and Lee wants to interview Chris but upsets him instead. The paramedics arrive to take care of Chris. Lee's crew has had enough of Lee's antics and asks Jon to take the camera. His crew asks Lee to admit what he did, Lee confesses he faked the tape.

Ponch makes Chris swear never to ride his bike unless he's with an adult.

Ellen tells Jon that Bill her ex-husband wants to get married again. Jon asks if he met someone overseas and Ellen tells Jon he wants to get married to her again. Jon can't understand why he divorced her in the first place. Jon tells her it would be nice to have someone around so Chris could ride his bike more often. Jon asks if she's going to marry him again. Ellen looks at Jon and tells him she's not.

## Notes

### Codes Used

* 10-20 - My location is.
* 10-4 - Message received.

## Cast

### Main Cast

* Larry Wilcox: Jon Baker
* Erik Estrada: Frank Poncherello
* Robert Pine: Joe Getraer

### Recurring

* Lew Saunders: Fritz
* Paul Linke: Grossman
* Brianne Leary: Sindy Cahill

### Guest Stars

* Harvey Jason: Lee (Wrightwood)
* Cliff Osmond: Michael
* Joshua Bryant: Benson
* Christian Zika: Chris (Roberts)
* Larry Gelman: (Gus) Becker
* Marvin Kaplan: Hilmer Nelson
* Liberty Godshall: Ellen Roberts
* Nathan Jung: Wrong-way Driver
* Regis Philbin: Newscaster
* Lawrence L. Levine: Gene
* Hinton Pope: Starter
* Paul Smith: Announcer