TYLER, TX (EAST TEXAS NEWS) — The Tyler City Council on Wednesday voted in favor of a resolution allowing the Tyler Police Department to apply for a grant from the Governor’s National Security Division of Texas to acquire portable crowd-protection barriers.
The grant request seeks roughly $52,000 to buy 42 portable barriers designed to prevent vehicles from entering areas where large crowds gather. Unlike the standard road-block barricades currently used, the new barriers are designed to stop a vehicle on impact and lift it off the ground.
The Chief Describes the Current Limitations
Tyler Police Chief Jimmy Toler said the department currently relies on visual barriers and police vehicles to close streets during public events.
“Right now we close streets with barriers or barricades where there is visibility; we place police cars on the far side of them,” Toler said. “If needed, we add something else to prevent anyone from crossing.”
Toler said the new barriers would allow officers to combine several units or deploy all 42 in a single location.
Events Cited
Toler said the barriers would be used at events such as the Tyler Rose Parade, downtown music festivals, protests, and other public gatherings.
“Our goal is to have the available funds distributed each year between law enforcement and fire departments to improve our services and increase the safety of our communities,” explained Toler. “Our briefing today was about applying for or securing a grant for physical barriers because of the activities we undertake in Tyler.”
Toler stated that the barriers are meant to prevent vehicles from entering the crowd “whether it is intentional or accidental.”
The council’s approval on Wednesday allows the department to submit the grant request to the state. At this time, no funding has been awarded.
