Greater Sudbury police unveiled its tactical rescue vehicle this week, the first vehicle of its kind for the service. Chief Sara Cunningham said the unit will only be used during high-risk situations and specialized training. It will not be used for general patrols. “We have an emergency response unit and a hostage rescue team, and adequacy standards say that we need this piece of equipment here locally,” Cunningham said. “It’s been a long time coming. It’s just really going to allow our officers to effectively, you know, rescue individuals in hostage situations.” The armoured unit will be deployed by the emergency response unit and the canine unit and offers ballistic protection. “With this piece of equipment, it will afford us the opportunity to do things we were never able to do before,” said Sgt. Jason Gagne. “It’s that safety piece. It reduces the risk to the community, to our operators and also to the subjects that we’re dealing with. We’re able to do things more effectively (and) safely. And it just provides us with more options.” Active threats, complex rescues Gagne said it will be used during armed barricades, active threats and complex rescue situations. “Often, we’re dealing with people with weapons, firearms, edged weapons, people who display high levels of violence, people who are a danger to themselves, to the community itself,” he said. “Communities are evolving. Drug problems are evolving. Things are getting worse. And we just need the technology and the equipment to better deal with those situations.” Cunningham said the vehicle has been in use for a month and has been used twice to resolve both situations peacefully. Already in use “We did have a high-risk situation out on MR80, in which we used it,” she said. “And we’re, again, successfully able to get closer to the residents and get the individuals out of the residence … Recently, (we used it) at a very high-risk situation on King Street in which firearms were located at both. So, these are instances where there is a high risk that our emergency response team will be out and activated.” Cunningham said the vehicle was purchased from the Barrie police, who were acquiring a new vehicle and no longer needed it. She said the price was $17,500, a fraction of what a TRV would typically cost. Residents might see the vehicle during training exercises or community events. “It’s another piece of equipment for this team and for public safety,” Cunnigham said.
