GPV Sergeant 4x4 - The Macomb Daily News Article

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Force is with cops- The Macomb Daily (click here for PDF file)

PUBLISHED: Thursday, April 3, 2008

Force is with cops

Built in New Haven, armored rig seats 12, costs $542,000

By Norb Franz
Macomb Daily Staff Writer

Macomb County first responders soon will have an armored personnel carrier to help them deal with barricaded gunmen, chemical attacks, natural disasters and other emergencies.

To some criminals, the 33,000-pound vehicle that seats up to 12 may appear imposing: a battering ram on the front, 24 feet long, 8 1/2 feet tall, flat black paint with no decals and 10 weapon ports, all sitting on six wheels.

Built by General Purpose Vehicles in New Haven, the company's Sergeant 4X4 model was delivered to the Warren Police Department this week.

As part of a mutual aid agreement, the all-purpose rig will be made available to area police and fire departments once they are trained in its operation.

 

With a price tag of $542,000, it is one of three Sergeant 4X4s funded by a $1.6 million grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Urban Area Security Initiative. The other two will be housed by the city of Southfield and the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Department.

 

With a steel hull comparable to military armor plating, the vehicle can be a useful tool to first responders in situations such as: Firefighting, enabling personnel to transport heavy equipment to remote or isolated areas, including so-called "hot zones."

 

Hazard material incidents, providing protection from 59 chemical contaminants.

Crowd control and riots, to protect officers entering violent scenes. Search and rescue, with four-wheel drive and 360-degree thermal imaging cameras.

 

"This gives our police the capability of handling just about every emergency situation," Warren Mayor James Fouts said.

 

The grant request was written by Warren police Lt. Darcy Leutzinger on behalf of the Southeast Michigan Homeland Security Consortium.

 

The eye-catching rig grabbed the attention of several officers, some of whom snapped pictures with cell phones.

 

It's one of only a few armored law enforcement vehicles in Macomb County. The Macomb County Sheriff's Office acquired a vehicle equipped with a battering ram in 1984, and a M1 tank from the U.S. Army TACOM complex in Warren in 2004.

 

"Every time the SWAT team is deployed, they take all their vehicles," Sheriff's Capt. Anthony Wickersham said. That included six incidents last year, seven emergencies in 2006 and eight in 2005, he said.