Thousands spent replacing life-saving equipment taken by vandals

"People messing about and taking the life rings are putting lives in danger."

Last year, a man had to be rescued after going into Hermitage Fishing Lake to save his dog.

Luckily, trained open-water swimmer, Tom Allen was playing football nearby and was able to rescue the man using the life rings located at the lake. Without this, the man saving his dog could have died.

Tom, said: “There is no doubt in my mind that the two life rings were a massive help, both to me in getting him out and to the casualty in keeping him alive in the first place.

“People messing about and taking the life rings are putting lives in danger. They are there for a reason, to save lives. They are not for entertainment.”

NWLDC has been making use of wildlife trap cameras around the sites, putting up signage to deter vandals and working with partners to deliver sessions at local schools about the role of safety equipment.

Paul Sanders, Head of Community Services at NWLDC, said: “Life rings are there to protect and save the public when they’re in danger from drowning.

“The local resident at Hermitage Fishing Lake was incredibly lucky that Tom was nearby and was willing to put himself at risk to rescue him from the lake. 

“I hope that this incident reminds vandals to think about their actions and the impact it could have if the public rescue equipment wasn’t available in an emergency.”