SAN ANTONIO — Starting a shift at San Antonio Police Department's Prue substation is unlike any other.
"It's unconventional," SAPD Officer Tim Henry said. "But sometimes we have to use unconventional means in order to accomplish our goals."
The goals on this force haven't changed, protect and serve by any means necessary.
Five months ago the department's northwest substation welcomed a fleet of ATVs to accomplish just that.
"The ATV concept came to us because of the land that we have to cover out here," Officer Henry said. "We do have some parks and some trails that do need to be covered, so being able to get into those areas with a little more efficiency is kind of important."
The importance is an understatement. These ATVs allow officers to off-road their efforts and cut down emergency response time for those who have may have wandered off and gotten lost and for those hoping to.
"Let's say someone is fleeing from police and go into the brush or go into the park, we have this tool to catch them," SAPD Officer, Hilario Flores, said.
"I mean we're not going to get tired in these and they are, so sooner or later we'll catch them."