Volunteers patrol Brooklyn neighborhoods

NEW YORK (FOX 5 NEWS) - On the streets of Flatbush, Brooklyn, Simcha Teich, 21, and his group of volunteers are keeping a watchful eye on the community.

"A lot of times it has to do with drugs, it has to do with partying," Simcha said. "Stuff that teenagers get into that doesn't really affect the outside of teenager world and there's no one that really caters to that specifically so that's what we're filling that void."

They're called the Flatbush Watch Safety Patrol, made up of about 15 volunteers, most of them in their 20s. They respond to all types of emergencies in Midwood and Flatbush. But what Simcha believes is their most important work is helping teens from orthodox Jewish communities with drug overdoses.

All of the members are trained to use opioid overdose kits and are also certified in first aid and CPR. They haven't gone through an official NYPD volunteer training program, but police say the group is free to be the department's eyes and ears. Last week, the 70th Precinct publicly thanked the Flatbush patrol on Twitter for helping to recover a gun.

"I'm actually making a difference in my community with this organization," volunteer Moshe Benabu said. "I'm actually moving around, I'm actually involved, I'm actually doing something that can support the community that I can make a difference."

You can contact them on almost any form of social media with the handle @FlatbushWatch or you can call their 24/7 hotline at 347-470-8858.

Right now the group gets about 5 calls a week, mostly on the weekends between 6 p.m. and 1 a.m. Their goal is to make their presence more known in the community. If they get more calls, they'll train more volunteers.