St John says it is disappointed by the disrespect shown after three ambulances had tyres slashed in Auckland's Manukau over the weekend.
Senior Sergeant Roelof Burger said Counties Manukau police investigating the wilful damage believed the offenders entered the gated yard of St John's Manukau Station on the corner of Plunket Avenue and Wiri Station Rd on Saturday night.
"While in the yard the offenders have punctured five tyres on three vehicles using a sharp object, rendering them inoperable," he said.
Burger said police were "incredibly disappointed with the irresponsible behaviour shown by these individuals".
"These are destructive actions, and consequences of actions such as this can put people's lives at risk.
"As the vehicles are inoperable for a period of time, this impacts St John’s ability to respond to those who are in need of medical attention within our community."
St John responds
St John Auckland District Operations Manager Andy Everiss said it was "disappointing individuals have vandalised the ambulances in an unwarranted attack".
“These ambulance vehicles are a vital part of how we continue to support and serve the local community.
“These actions show great disrespect to our people, who rely on these vehicles to do lifesaving work every day.
"Thankfully, this incident did not severely impact our emergency ambulance response, and we remain available to respond in an emergency."
Last night, St John Manukau shared images from the Ambulance Bay at Middlemore Hospital following a "steady night".
"The ambulance bay is one of those places the public don’t often see. It’s constant movement. Offloads, handovers, paperwork, quick resets, then straight back out the gate. For ambulance staff, there’s rarely a pause," it said online.
"We’re proud to stand behind our ambulance crews and support them where we can. A strong ambulance response isn’t just about the callout - it’s about backing each other up, every step of the way."
Burger said officers conducting inquiries into the incident wanted to hear from anyone who may have information about the incident.
"We would also like to hear from anyone with CCTV or dashcam footage in the wider Plunket Avenue and Wiri Station Rd areas,” they said.
Information could be provided online, by calling 105, or provided anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 0800 555 111.
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