Staff devastated after thieves steal £1,000 defibrillator from Preston beauty salon

The life-saving equipment was stolen during a burglary at Flame Urban Spa, at the junction of Garstang Road and Blackpool Road, at around 10pm on Sunday (February 9).

Thieves were caught on CCTV forcing their way into the salon, causing hundreds of pounds in damage, before snatching the defibrillator.

In addition to the Philips HeartStart kit, which cost the salon £1,000, the thieves also stole a work's mobile phone and cash from the staff's tip jar.

Manager Nicola Dickinson said the defibrillator had been bought with money raised by the salon following the sudden death of a staff member's husband from a heart attack.

"It's such a shame after everything we did to fund this life-saving equipment," said Nicola.

"We worked so hard to raise the money after one of our colleague's lost her husband suddenly from a heart attack.

"It's absolutely vital to saving lives, but these thieves just don't care. What are they even going to do with it?

"It's probably been dumped somewhere, so we're asking people to keep their eyes open for it, as it could be anywhere now.

"The tips that our staff have worked so hard for, and the mobile phone, can be replaced but funding a new defibrillator will take a lot of work.

"We're going to have to start from scratch with our fundraising, but that won't stop us.

"We're going to have open days, raffles and other things going on in the coming weeks to try and do everything we can to replace this life-saving machine as soon as possible.

"Together, as a community, we want to ensure that this reckless act will not result in a tragedy that could have been avoided with the defibrillator..

"Let's just hope its not needed before its return."

Lancashire Police have been approached for comment.