Thieves cause thousands in damage to rural N.S. volunteer fire station

A fire chief in Digby County, N.S., says his small volunteer department is out nearly $7,000 after a break-in earlier this month. 

Doug Cromwell said thieves who broke into the Southville Fire Department station made off with a firefighter's coat and pants — known as bunker gear — and the hydraulic motor and pump that powers their Jaws of Life, the equipment used to get people out of a vehicle after a car crash.

Cromwell said without the stolen uniform, the department is down one firefighter. That's a big hit to a department of about 20 members, he said Wednesday.

The fire chief said he contacted Digby RCMP on March 14 after receiving a call from a painting crew that had arrived in the morning to work on the building and found broken windows in the station.

He said this isn't the first time the Southville department has fallen victim to a break-in. In the past, people have broken into the building and stolen gasoline. But he said the losses have never been this extensive, estimating it will cost the department $6,000 to $7,000 to replace the stolen equipment and broken windows.

"This is probably the worst hit we took."

The department serves Southville, Riverdale and Danvers, a trio of rural communities southwest of Weymouth, N.S.

Cromwell said they've reached an agreement with the Havelock fire department allowing them to borrow the Jaws of Life if needed. He said the Bear River department is also offering support. 

But the chief said it's disheartening to see thieves target a rural department serving small communities, and he wondered why someone would have stolen the uniform and motor. 

"If they needed help, all they had to do was come and ask. We would have tried to help [them] in some way," said Cromwell. 

RCMP believe whoever broke into the fire hall fled in a side-by-side all-terrain vehicle. They're asking that anyone with information contact police at 902-245-2579 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.