Lt. Greg Patchin (Gerrish Twp. Police Department) wrote two grants last fall and were awarded funds through the Higgins Lake Foundation Community Grant program and the Roscommon County Community Foundation’s Morley Foundation Fund, Doug Allen Fire & EMS Fund and the Roscommon County General Fund.
The Gerrish Twp. Police Department and Fire/EMS Department, along with community partner organization ACT-NOW provided the additional funding needed for purchasing and installing a “TRACK” system on the Police Department’s existing Polaris Ranger off-road special response vehicle. The tracks will allow for emergency response and rescues in difficult terrain not only during snowy winters but also on hills, uneven wooded areas and swampy marsh areas. More traction would provide for greater stability and the vehicle will have more ground clearance to be able to clear deeper snow and standing water/mud.
This vehicle is available for use for the Gerrish Twp. Police Department and Fire/EMS Department for search and rescues, injuries or accidents in areas where ambulances cannot reach such as sledding hills and frozen water, and stand-by services at large community events as a patrol and transport vehicle.
The Ranger has been utilized in many incidents since it was obtained originally through a U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company grant written by Chief Hill in 2007. Additional equipment was added such as the Freedom Cab and the rear Stokes Carrier and Jump Seat. Now, most recently with the addition of the Tracks System, this specialized vehicle becomes one of the only of its type in our County. It will be available for call-outs to our neighboring agencies through mutual aid whenever necessary and will further benefit our community and visitors to our area.
The Gerrish Township Police Department would like to thank all of our donor partners and supporters in this project!
