OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE FROM THE SHARPNESS STATION OF THE SEVERN AREA RESCUE ASSOCIATION (SARA) Sunday the 4th of September 2005

Gloucestershire Police has recovered the generator and oxygen equipment that was stolen from the Sharpness lifeboat stations search and rescue Ambulance on Sunday the 28th of August. The Generator was recovered in full working order however the oxygen set and trauma bag has suffered severe water damage and whilst the oxygen bottle can be salvaged the rest of the life saving equipment will have to be replaced.

Station Chairman Shane Clark says this is an excellent result achieved in such a short time, I would like to send my heart felt thanks to Berkeley and Dursley Police Station’s for finding this vital equipment so soon, Shane says having the property post coded always help’s with re-uniting property as all the equipment that SARA owns has a special “microdot” system sprayed on it at time of purchase and under a ultra-violet light and special magnifier thousands of little dots all read “SARA and our Postcode” the treatment can be applied to anything from kit bags to vehicles and outboard motors, the treatment is impossible to remove and impossible to see with the naked eye. Shane went onto say that post coding items helps the Police re-unite stolen property much faster to its legal owner in the event of a theft.

The Ambulance is currently in secure storage awaiting new back doors to be fitted, this has had to go through our insurance company as the cost of the damage caused is in excess of £1,000, I am convinced this will affect next years already £6,000 insurance premium the station currently pays.

I am very grateful to the huge amount of public support we received on this despicable crime, we were donated a new generator last Tuesday by a Bristol man and several donations were made to help us replace the medical equipment, I cant thank-you all enough.

This crime had excellent national media coverage and would like to think this has helped the Police with the rapid result.

ENDS

News Item added 08/09/2005