Latrobe looks to update police fleet with new SUV

Latrobe council is considering an update of the city’s police fleet with a new SUV modified to meet the needs of law enforcement.

Purchase and financing of a 2021 Ford Explorer Police Interceptor are on the agenda for council’s Jan. 4 reorganization and voting meeting.

According to City Manager Michael Gray, the SUV has been figured into Latrobe’s budget and will replace a 2017 police car as part of an ongoing program to keep the seven-vehicle fleet in top shape.

“We rotate one of the police vehicles out every three years,” said Gray. “These emergency vehicles are run at their limit, so it’s good to have a schedule.”

The SUV would cost $34,285 if purchased through the state’s COSTARS bidding program, he said. It would be financed with a bank loan.

Police Chief John Sleasman said the Interceptor, unlike a standard Explorer, is “specially built for us,” with an extra-stiff suspension and a heavy-duty frame.

It would be the third SUV-style police unit for Latrobe.

“We are moving in that direction, as are most police departments,” Sleasman said. “The Dodge Chargers we’ve gone through have been costing us more money in maintenance and upkeep than they’re worth.”

ATV, breathing gear eyed

City officials at this week’s council meeting discussed the possible purchase of an all-terrain vehicle for the police department as well.

An ATV the department once had was donated to Latrobe-GLSD Parks and Recreation and could be available in a pinch, as well as a similar unit belonging to the city fire police, as long as the latter unit’s chief “is at home and we’re able to get to it,” Sleasman said. “It would be much better if we had our own.”

He said police have used an ATV to retrieve a patient from a local recreational path and that one would be useful for patrolling the grounds of the town’s annual Fourth of July Celebration, which was canceled this year because of covid-19 pandemic concerns.

“It’s a question of whether now is the right time” to buy an ATV, Mayor Rosie Wolford said. “Were in a watch-our-money mode.”

Sleasman noted grant dollars might be available to help pay for an ATV. Councilman Jim Kelley suggested pricing used models.

City officials expressed interest in equipping police vehicles with breathing apparatus, similar to what firefighters use, to assist police officers who may be first on the scene of a structure fire.

That situation occurred last week when a house fire displaced a family on Oak Street. Wolford said two responding police officers who were treated for smoke inhalation “tried to enter that house and get up the stairs. They couldn’t because of the thick smoke.”

With neighbors also providing an assist, the residents got safely out of the burning structure, she said.

Sleasman said he’ll check into funding that might cover purchase of breathing equipment. He noted city officers are trained in use of such gear.

Sleasman told council doses of the Moderna covid-19 vaccine were being made available for Latrobe police officers, firefighters and local ambulance crews.