A stroke charity in Essex has been forced to close its doors after a copper piping theft caused a ‘huge’ gas leak.
The thieves detached a gas pipe while stripping the material from the Tendring Specialist Stroke Services building in Holland-on-Sea.
The charity provides rehabilitation and therapy to stroke survivors who experience isolation due to health conditions that arise from their stroke.
Services offered by the charity include physiotherapy, physical rehabilitation and art therapy.
Director of operations, Rosemary Garrey, said:
“I could smell gas outside and I thought ‘Maybe I am wrong’ but I came inside the building and I could still smell it and hear the meter.
“We were lucky there was no-one smoking outside.
“A company is replacing the length of copper piping which was vandalised.
“But people who need this service will now have to wait for the repairs to be done and the heating restored at a huge cost to the charity.
“The team isn’t here and people haven’t been able to come and this is a lifeline.”
Garrey is also concerned about the financial impact of the theft.
She added:
“As a charity, we cannot afford this type of incident, as it comes at a cost to the organisation – the gas we have to pay for, the repair, the closure of the centre.
“This is all at a huge financial and personal cost.
“I feel very angry and my fear is they could do it again.”
Essex Police are calling on the public to get in touch if they saw anything or have access to any video footage of the event.
A police spokesperson said:
“If you have any information you can submit a report online at www.essex.police.uk or use the Live Chat button to speak to an online operator between 7am and 11pm.
“Quote crime reference 42/27320/22.
“You can also call us on 101 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”
