'Lives were put at risk' by mindless vandal who sabotaged Walney fire engine

LIVES were put at risk by the "mindless" vandal who sabotaged a fire engine after breaking into the station on Walney, the crew's manager has said.

Firefighters at the station in Mill Lane became aware the building had been targeted by an intruder on Tuesday morning when they discovered one of the two fire engines had been disconnected from its power supply.

The vehicle was out of action and unable to respond to any emergency calls until its battery was fully recharged. Lockers and personal belongings were also moved during the incident but nothing is believed to have been stolen.

Police are now investigating the break-in and forensic officers have been to the fire station to retrieve vital evidence.

Crew manager Simon Morgan, in charge of the on-call team, said whoever was responsible had potentially put peoples' lives – including those of their own family and friends – in danger.

Simon Morgan "We would not have been able to get to a callout if we had been tasked to an emergency," he said.

"It is very irresponsible; they have put lives at risk, and as whoever is done it is likely to live on Walney, they might even have put their own family and friends' lives in danger."

Walney resident Alan Williamson described the incident as "scary".

He said: "It is absolutely pathetic that someone has done this. Considering how hard the crew and Walney fought to save the fire station when it was threatened with closure because of county council budget cuts, I can't understand how someone can do something like that.

"If equipment had been damaged it could have been a massive problem. It's scary."

The break-in is understood to have happened between midnight and 8am on Tuesday. Anyone with information is asked to contact PC 2480 on 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.