Dozens of helmeted police were a formidable sight in Highland Park last week, but their command post vehicle raised eyebrows when it was hauled away on a tow truck.
Carburetor problem, sheepish officials explained later, after the vehicle had responded Tuesday when a man had barricaded himself in his apartment. The man later emerged without incident.
The box-shaped dark gray step van serves as a mobile office with phones, fax machine and radios.
“It essentially made it [to Highland Park] and conked out,” said Bannockburn Police Chief Kevin Tracz, who responded to the barricade call. He serves on the board of the Northern Illinois Police Alarm System, a coalition of suburban police departments.
The command vehicle is usually stationed in Glenview. But after it stopped and started along the way to Highland Park, officials called for a tow truck to transport it to its manufacturer, LDV, in Burlington, Wis.
“I already had [a police officer] call and say, `Are you trying to save gas?'” Tracz said.
