Gear stolen from firefighters

"We're devastated people would do this - gutted." Chris Kennedy

Thieves who stole equipment that could save people’s lives have left firefighters stunned and angry.

A house in Palmerston North was donated to Fire and Emergency New Zealand so it could be used in a training exercise this week, but thieves broke into it and stole valuable gear.

Training officer Chris Kennedy arrived at the site on Wednesday to find the facilities ‘‘trashed’’.

A defibrillator, first-aid and burns kits, firefighting gloves, torches and hoods were stolen, as well as a hot water cylinder, airconditioning unit, bathroom vanities and fittings from the house.

‘‘This site is an essential part of a training programme to ensure firefighters are able to save people’s lives. They have gone to significant effort to break into a secure site and steal our defibrillator, first-aid kits and firefighting equipment,’’ Kennedy said. ‘‘We’re devastated people would do this – gutted. I was ropeable yesterday, because who steals from firemen?’’

They had planned to use the site as part of a two-week project to create new fire safety messages for the public and to get footage of firefighters in action for training purposes. This has been cancelled.

The exercise itself, where 20 firefighters from the New Zealand Defence Force will undergo training tomorrow, will go ahead.

‘‘This type of scenario training is extremely important for giving firefighters the opportunity to see what it is like to fight a real-life house fire,’’ Kennedy said.

The site was secured with a big padlock, but the house had already been partly burnt in an earlier exercise, so once on site, the thieves would have been able to get inside the building easily. However, the firefighting gear was locked away, Kennedy said.

Insurance would cover the gear, which is being replaced before the house-burning exercise goes ahead. But the filming would not go ahead.

Police are investigating.