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ASHEBORO, N.C. – It may not be the most conventional crime fighting machine, but Randolph County Sheriff Maynard Reid said a new piece of equipment will help his deputies in a number of their cases.

More than 2,100 emergency service departments from across the country applied for the 2008 U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company Operation Ranger grant. But in the end, less than three percent received a six-wheel, all-terrain emergency response vehicle.

"This is the only all-terrain vehicle that we really have right now and this is a life-saver," Cpl. Doug Nixon of the Randolph County Sheriff's Office said.

With tourist attractions like the North Carolina Zoo, Victory Junction Gang Camp and the Uwharrie Mountains, Randolph County deputies said it won't be hard to put the vehicle to use.

"When children get lost, you can cover a lot more ground in something like this than you can on foot,” Reid said. “And it's going to just be a great all around tool for us.”

"We have a lot of rural farm land that we can use it to get into where you can't just normally get a car. Hopefully we can load up and get out there a little quicker and help the citizens during their time of need," Nixon said.

And because drugs like marijuana are often grown in hard-to-reach places, the narcotics unit will also use this vehicle for drug eradication.

"Anything that will help us do our job better, more efficiently, that's what we're here for. And when you're not costing the tax payers anything, that makes it even better," Reid said.