A piece of armor made for the military is now in Tulsa and the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office is the only law enforcement in the nation to receive the heavy duty crime-fighting barricade.The county says it received a $36,600 grant from Homeland Security to purchase the barricade equipment.
It’s called the FROMM RDB-54 Combat Rapid Deployment Armored Barricade System.
The six barriers can spread out to be 18 feet wide. It’s made of metal strong enough to ricochet rounds from an AK-47 or explosives used in the military.
FOX23’s Abbie Alford explains how it can protect law enforcement and you in a dangerous situation.
The six barriers can spread out to be 18 feet wide. It’s made of metal strong enough to ricochet rounds from an AK-47 or explosives used in military.
"After the first two detonations the Marine Corp said ,'you know this isn't doing anything we might want to try thirty,'" says Captain Chuck Jordan.
Captain Jordan, The TCSO Special Operations Team Commander, says the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office is the only law enforcement in the nation with this armor.
"A lot of what we do in the county is in rural areas and sometimes we have a farmhouse that there is no cover for a quarter mile and we have to get up there and negotiate with the man or woman to get them out," says Jordan.
Or the tool can be used in critical situations when confronting a suspect at a house with eight pipe bombs inside or serving a child molestation warrant.
"This provides the officer, the deputy, the ability to take his cover with him," says Jordan.
Weighing 500 pounds the barriers can stop a lot more than bullets.
"It will also stop a five thousand pound vehicle at a speed of 30 miles per hour," says TCSO Sgt. Shannon Clark.
Sergeant Clark says the portable barriers will come in handy at vehicle checkpoints.
"There is always that high potential that someone could maybe not see the lights, maybe not want to stop for us and this would be able to supply for security and safety for the officers and the citizens that they are talking to," says Clark.
Captain Jordan says the next step is getting the team trained with the new equipment.
"It's a tool for our toolbox and we are going to have to learn how to use it," says Jordan.
The TCSO also says the barricades can also be used to for crowd control at the Tulsa State Fair.
