FLOOD and river rescue volunteers have been left stunned after thieves stole their £15,000 rescue boat from outside a house in Worcester.

Police are appealing for help after thieves broke through steel chains to steal the 20ft Valliant powerboat and its £2,000 trailer from Broomhall Green, off Broomhall Way in St Peter’s, in the early hours of Saturday morning.

The boat – clearly identifiable as a rescue vessel by its fluorescent orange colouring and flashing blue lights – was owned by local firefighter Tim Perks, and used across the region by a group of volunteers known simply as the safety team.

The team, many of whom are fellow emergency services professionals, offer a voluntary service in their spare time offering safety cover at events such as charity boat races and waterside festivals across the region as well as responding to major events such as floods or river rescue.

Mr Perks, aged 39, said: “It’s a hard feeling for this to have happened but it also means there are now events we cannot help out with and support because we’ve lost this piece of equipment.

“We’re a bit like the water version of the St John’s Ambulance service. We provide the rescue side and the immediate medical care, and then hand over to paramedics.

“Already people who know what’s happened are telling me how disgusted they are with the individuals who have done this.”

Mr Perks is a former instructor at Worcester Canoe Club and said he has carried out voluntary work on the waterways for many years.

He said the 2007 floods offered the perfect example of why he and his fellow volunteers are inspired to help.

“I remember coming home from work helping people during the 2007 floods to find three feet of water in my own house,” he said. “I know how other people feel and that motivates me.”

The boat was chained to a lamppost outside Mr Perks’ home ready to undergo repair work when it was stolen sometime after 1am on Saturday morning.

It was fitted with a four-stroke Yamaha engine and also contained £1,000 of equipment including flares, radio and GPS navigation equipment.

Mr Perks said the trailer’s lighting system had been disconnected and hopes someone may therefore have noticed it being towed away in the middle of the night without any lights on.

“It would have looked very unusual,” he said.

Anyone with any information should contact police on 0300 333 3000, quoting reference number 368S031009.