When Brookfield Police Chief Dan Faustino acquired a set of extrication tools through a federal government surplus program, he expected it to be used by the department.

However, once he got the equipment home, he realized the Brookfield Fire Department was likely to have more of a need for it, and he has loaned it to firefighters.

The Jaws of Life-style equipment is used for prying or cutting open vehicles and in other situations where people have become trapped. The fire department has its own relatively new Jaws of Life package, but this one is different in that it is battery powered and can be taken anywhere, while the fire department equipment is powered by a fire truck, limiting its reach.

The new equipment was designed for armored military vehicles, “so the capabilities for that tool are nice,” Faustino said

promoThe equipment sells for about $13,500 new, and appears never to have been used, he said. The township will need to buy a new battery pack and a connector to attach the tools, “a small amount of money to spend to get an expensive tool out on the road,” Faustino said.

For the police department, Faustino acquired gun racks for evidence room storage, and a label printing machine.

The equipment was free, costing the department only the travel to Fort Meade in Maryland and back.

In the past, Faustino has acquired rifles, pickup trucks, a skid steer loader, a utility vehicle, computers and accessories and tools through the federal surplus program.