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Cleveland Stocking Up on Safety Gear for RNC Convention
Thursday, April 28, 2016 05:55 PM
By: Todd Beamon
Cleveland has released bids seeking more safety gear for the Republican National Convention in July.
The equipment ranges from conversion vans that would be used to transport prisoners to body armor, Cleveland.com reports.
The bids were posted Wednesday on the city's website.
The gear would eventually be paid for through a $50 million federal grant to cover security costs for the convention, according to the report.
Here is what Cleveland officials are seeking:
14 pickup trucks, ranging in size from 8,500 pounds to 12,800 pounds, for Cleveland's police and fire departments.
11 conversion vans, some of which would be used as prisoner-transport vehicles. Others would have workspaces in the back with desks and plywood flooring for use by public-safety officials.
100 sets of body armor, to be labeled with identification badges of the Cleveland Fire Department.
11 "utility task vehicles" (UTVs) — essentially high-powered golf carts — that would be used by emergency services personnel to transport patients.
7 UTVs for the Cleveland Public Works Department.
The convention will be held July 18-21 at the Quicken Loans Arena.
As many as 50,000 visitors — along with many protestors — are expected to converge on Cleveland, and city officials are expanding its police force for the event.
Cleveland.com reports that among the items already purchased or requested through the federal grant include 2,000 sets of riot gear, 10,000 sets of plastic handcuffs, 2,400 "Camelbak" water packs, 300 bicycles, 15 motorcycles, and eight sets of mounted night-vision goggles.
