On Wednesday 6th November the Herald newspaper reported a break in at an equipment store used by Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team. Vital gear was lost, and the full cost of replacement is unlikely to be met by insurance.
About £11,500 worth of kit was taken in burglaries on two successive nights, from a secluded store that the team rent at the old Glencoe hospital. The losses include stretchers, a radio and a quad bike.
'We use it [the quad bike] for getting into some areas and can also use it for taking stretchers off certain hills' team leader John Grieve told the paper. 'We also go up to service our radio masts on it. It is used a lot.'
'It was covered by motor insurance. So we will probably get around £3000 but it will cost about £8500 to replace with a new one. That is a direct loss that we will have to bear, as we need one.'
There is speculation the store was deliberately targeted.
'We use what was the ambulance garage but there is no big sign on the door saying Glencoe Mountain Rescue. So the thieves obviously knew about it' he said.
'They managed to break in through the roof. The first night they didn't take much, but they came back next night and took a lot more.'
The team would welcome donations to help replace the lost gear. Today John Grieve also tells us that the break in has now prompted plans to build a new team base in a less isolated part of the village, with enough room on site to safely store all their kit.
For more info on Glencoe MRT see the team website or send them a donation here.
Comments