RAPID CITY, S.D. –The Rapid City Fire Department needs the public’s help. Recently, a firefighter’s gear was stolen out of one of the department’s vehicles.
Now they are reaching out to the community to keep their eyes open for the stolen gear.
The stolen gear included a full protective kit, along with a few personal items used on the job.
According to Division Chief Brian Povandra, “It doesn’t happen very often, but when it does, it costs the taxpayers and the city money to replace. That’s the full set of gear, everything that we lost is close to $5,000 worth of equipment.”
That includes a bunker coat, bunker pants, boots, helmet, mask, gloves, and hood.
The importance of finding this gear is that in the Rapid City Fire Department agency, all firefighters have their own gear, tailored to fit them. Officials says it’s an important element in helping firefighters work efficiently and safely.
“Once we noticed that it was missing, we got him in another set of personal protective equipment. So we do have a set for him right now. It’s a little difficult, our gear, we order our gear about once or twice a year depending on the circumstances,” Povandra said.
The firefighter also had a personal radio strap and a helmet camera stolen with the equipment.
Any information that would lead to the recovery of the equipment can be given to the Rapid City Fire Department.
