East of England Ambulance staff have been left picking up the pieces following a random act of vehicle vandalism which caused damage ‘running into thousands of pounds’.
A paramedic responding to a patient in Penhill, Luton, in the early hours of Monday (3rd August) had parked the response car in Wauluds Bank Drive.
But when he returned to the car, he found such significant damage to the roof that it had to be removed from operational duties which has led to a £3,000 repair bill.
Luton Duty Locality Officer George Turner said:
It appears someone has had an unsuccessful attempt to remove the blue lights with a crow bar.
We can never really understand why people would target a vehicle that is out on the roads to respond to patients and save lives. The insurance estimation has come in at £3,000; however this is not just about monetary value. For instance, the paramedic had to go off-duty to deal with the aftermath which is one less paramedic to go and respond to patients.
To help police with their investigation, we’re appealing for witnesses to come forward who might have spotted suspicious activity near the car, parked next to the bus stop between 2.23-2.54am.
You can call Bedfordshire Police on 101 with any information; we really do hope someone might have spotted something and can support their ambulance service in getting justice.”
