A local mechanic shop recently donated labor and materials to make the Jamestown Police Department's SWAT vehicle operational.
Barmore-Sellstrom Inc., 1403 E. Second St., donated time, labor and materials to get the vehicle ready for use by the department.
The repairs were completed Nov. 16, with the van now usable by officers.
Article Photos
Barmore-Sellstrom recently donated repairs to the Jamestown Police Department’s SWAT vehicle. Pictured, from left, are Ron Powers of the JPD, Christ Barmore of Barmore-Sellstrom, Lt. Tim Jackson of the JPD, Ryan Ecklund of Barmore-Sellstrom, and Sgt. Greg Wozneak of the JPD.
Submitted photo
"They have an older SWAT van, so an older vehicle, and Barmore-Sellstrom helped by contributing to fixing the exhaust and making it safe for our guys in uniform down here," said Chris Barmore of Barmore-Sellstrom.
According to Lt. Tim Jackson of the Jamestown Police Department, a previous employee of the shop, Ron Powers, who is now a JPD SWAT member, approached the shop about the repairs needed, and the shop then decided to donate the costs to get it fixed.
"We went to them, one of our officers used to work there, Ron Powers, he went to the owner and said, 'Would you take a look at our vehicle?'"?Jackson said. "They said sure and then offered to do all the repairs for free."
Barmore said the cost was more than $600, which included repairs to the exhaust.
"We did quite a bit to it," he said.
Many of the repairs were necessary in order for the SWAT van to be used by the team for call-outs and training in the area, said police.
"They had to reroute the exhaust system and that took quite a bit of materials and labor to do the welding and they replaced several emergency lights that were burnt out and needed repair," said Jackson.
Jackson said the shop also told the department what repairs would be needed in the future to keep the vehicle running
"The repairs definitely had to be done," he said.
Barmore said the donation was important to help protect the safety of the community.
"It was just Barmore-Sellstrom helping out our fellow law enforcement officers," he said. "Making sure they are all safe, because you never know when you might need them."