MASON - A new Heavy Rescue Unit Vehicle, equipped with flashers, sirens and a spotlight system lined in brown and gold, branded with the insignia of the Ingham County Sheriff’s Office was introduced Tuesday.

The $38,350 white Ford F550 Diesel is equipped with $11,260 worth of tools - lighting system, a generator, the jaws of life and a temporary helicopter landing site - that are used in emergencies.

“We can deliver services to the public better, more efficiently and be assured the units will be there,” Ingham County Sheriff Gene Wriggelsworth said.

Wriggelsworth announced the new vehicle Tuesday at a press conference in the sheriff’s garage.

The sheriff’s office assisted seven fires and two extractions in 2001.

The new vehicle will replace aging equipment and assist the members of the county’s rescue unit. Wriggelsworth said Ingham County authorities are better prepared for pin-in car accidents, airplane crashes and farm-related emergencies.

The compartments on the side of the truck open to reveal equipment which includes 70-pound sheers, used to cut a roof off a car. Wriggelsworth said the equipment could cut off the door of the truck.

Inside the back of the truck there are gurneys, first aid kits and other life-saving devices. Spotlights can raise above the truck to provide lighting in emergencies.

The cab features a communications panel that can guide a helicopter into a temporary landing site.

“These people can do what needs to be done to save lives,” he said.

He admitted that even he would not know how to operate some of the specialty equipment.

Officials expect the truck will be in service up to 15 years.

The new vehicle allows the 11 volunteers from the Ingham County Sheriff Office’s Heavy Rescue Unit respond to car accidents that require victim extraction, airplane crashes and farm-related accidents, Ingham County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Michael Perez said. Perez serves as the county’s emergency services program manager.

“We are going to take pride in this state-of-the-art vehicle so we can provide service to the people of Ingham county,” he said.

The volunteers receive little more than a pat on the back for the work that they do, but volunteers like Brian Ball see the vehicle as a reward in itself.

“The truck will allow more room to carry equipment to do a more effective job,” he said.