Slowly, carefully, the Mighty Mustang creeps up to the big round black capsule and stretches its metal neck upward and outward. Then it goes up on its tippytoes — on tracks that can lift its front or back — while it carefully deposits a simulated explosive device through the open door into the capsule’s cradle.

DRC/Gary Payne

Denton Assistant Fire Marshal Chad Weldon, left, and Fire Marshal Rick Jones unload a robot from the Denton Fire/Rescue bomb truck on Tuesday.

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Then it pushes the button on the capsule that closes the door. If this had been a real explosive device, it would be contained for moving to a safe place. The capsule would contain blast pressure and fragments if the device exploded and even capture gas or a chemical from a biological weapon.

Robot and capsule both are for the emergency disposal of explosive devices.

“Think of Wile E. Coyote jumping on a bomb and suppressing it,” Denton Fire Marshal Rick Jones said.

The robot also can be used in tactical situations, helping police agencies with situations that would be dangerous for officers to approach. With cameras, a microphone and a weapon, the robot can defuse dangerous situations with less danger to humans.

The capsule, called a total containment vessel, can use diagnostic equipment to determine what is in the device, suppress an ex­plosion and contain any chemical residue from the blast.

Jones and Assistant Fire Marshal Chad Weldon can remotely activate the large robot, named the Mighty Mustang by Woodrow Wilson Elementary School students in a contest, from 1,000 feet away with a tether or even farther away digitally. It can deploy up to seven cameras, a microphone, two “disruptors” that fire water or ceramic flakes, and a weapon that fires 12-gauge shotgun shells.

Weldon said the robot can cut into a vehicle to remove a device and place it in the capsule, all without risk of endangerment to humans.

The fire marshals also have two smaller robots for dealing with less dangerous situations.

A control panel on the side of the capsule enables the fire marshals to take a sample of what is inside and encapsulate it for testing at an FBI lab, Weldon said.

The fire marshal’s office has owned the capsule for about a year, and the five certified members of the bomb squad have trained extensively on it. It has been used to remove pipe bombs, hand grenades and unexploded ordnance, but its main use would come in the event of a major threat in a highly populated area, such as one of Denton’s university campuses or a courthouse, Jones said.

“It’s easier to move a hazard than a great many people,” he said. “In order to have FBI Class 1 accreditation, you must have one of these.”

The equipment is provided at no expense to city taxpayers but comes from grants from the Department of Homeland Security. The city fire marshal serves nine counties for explosives protection under the federal grants.

Currently, the robot rides in a converted ambulance that also pulls the capsule trailer. The fire marshals are working on specifications for a real bomb truck that should be in operation by February, he said.

“We’re strategically located north of the metroplex,” Jones said. “We’re supported by the FBI and the ATF. If anyone in the nine-county area needs us, we’ll respond.”

DONNA FIELDER can be reached at 940-566-6885. Her e-mail address is dfielder@dentonrc.com .