By Lena Howland KOAA News 5
COLORADO SPRINGS, CO – More than $10,000 worth of equipment has been stolen from Canadian firefighters who are here to honor fallen firefighters.
They stored their large tents, tables and other things needed for the annual memorial in Colorado Springs, but it wasn’t until this week when they found out it was all missing.
Their equipment was supposed to be set up in Memorial Park next to the IAFF Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial this weekend. Instead, the Canadian firefighters had to scramble and pay extra to rent a white unmarked tent last minute, but they are still hoping to track down their gear.
“They’ve all gone missing, they’ve all been taken from us,” Shea Hobbis, a Vancouver firefighter said.
It was a tough call to take.
“Recently, we just got the call earlier this week that the trailer that we used to store materials in, that we store locally, the trailer was broken into and emptied of its contents,” Hobbis said.
Vancouver firefighter Shea Hobbis says those contents of clearly marked Canadian tents, tables and chairs make up a place of respite called “Canada House,” meant to look after families of the fallen.
“It doesn’t really serve a purpose for anybody but us to host our families that are down here trying to be here for their lost ones, their family members that have given their life in the line of duty, that’s why we’re all here,” he said.
On Saturday, dozens upon dozens of Canadian families with join others from across the nation here in Colorado Springs to honor their fallen firefighters.
“You’re already here for a solemn event and to have that extra kick, is tough to take,” he said.
The equipment was stolen from a trailer being stored at Reed Trailer Sales off of South Academy Road.
“This one happened sometime over the past year, I’m not sure when,” David Reed, owner of Reed Trailer Sales said. “When I went to get it ready for the Calgary Fire Department for their upcoming event, I noticed that the latch had been broken into and I looked inside and it looked like some stuff was missing.”
Reed tells News5 this isn’t usually a site for storage, but he made an exception for the firefighters. Unfortunately, he says his property is no stranger to theft.
“Unfortunately it’s out of my hands, there are bad people in this world, opportunistics, who are willing to do that, willing to steal from people that are just hard working, trying to keep food on the table, and keep lights on,” he said.
He says because of this, he won’t be doing storage for anyone else moving forward. But this comes as little comfort for firefighters left empty handed.
“We want our house back,” Hobbis said.
If you see one of their clearly marked Canadian tents or have any information about what may have happened to them, you’re asked to contact Shea Hobbis directly at [email protected].
Source: KOAA News 5. See more at KOAA.com.
