In the aftermath of last Sunday morning’s apparent murder of four Lakewood Police officers, Issaquah Police were among the hundreds of public safety personnel and thousands of others who gathered there and in Tacoma to pay their final respects to their fallen comrades.

Issaquah Police officer Robert Hendrickson’s image was visible at the Nov. 29 Tacoma prayer vigil at the Champions Centre church, head bowed, in an AP photo that circulated around the world. Several other IPD officers were there, too, surrounded by police and fire departments across Western Washington.

Flags on city property were lowered to half-mast on Monday. They will stay lowered until services are held for the officers on Dec. 8 at the Tacoma Dome.

While never directly involved in the manhunt for shooting suspect Maurice Clemmons — who was himself killed Tuesday — Issaquah Police Chief Paul Ayers said local officers felt they were still needed as members of a broader community.

“Words can’t explain how traumatic an event like this for the state and for public safety employees,” he said.

Ayers said he felt it was important to recognize the killings were an attack on the community as a whole, and not just police officers. According to Ayers, some Issaquah police officers are residents in the Lakewood and Tacoma area and it is likely that members of the department knew the victims. The four Lakewood officers — Ronald Owens, Gregory Richards, Tina Griswold and Sgt. Mark Renninger — previously served with state troopers and local agencies in Kent, Lacey and Tukwila.

The Issaquah Police Chief also sought to express his continued gratitude to Issaquah residents for the kind words of support and gestures the police department has received in the past few days.

“When a situation like this happens we feel we receive a lot of support,” Ayers said.

“I just wanted to recognize the support we get from the community and the positive comments, support and kind gestures that our officers recieve.”