A North Carolina fire department is asking for the return of a volunteer firefighter's gear, which was stolen from his car.
Union Road firefighter Andrew Hascox was carrying his turnout gear in his personal car when he went to the movies with his kids in Gastonia, WCNC-TV reports. While they were in the theater, the gear, along with a laptop and a handgun, were stolen from the vehicle.
“It’s like my best friend in a bag. I wear it everywhere, every time an emergency comes out," Hascox, who also is a full-time member of the Gastonia Fire Department, told WCNC. "I wear it to help other people, it's not a fashion statement, it’s definitely something to protect me.”
Police are investigating the incident, but no security cameras were in the parking lot. The windows of the car weren't broken, and Hascox said he remembers locking the vehicle.
Hascox hopes the gear is returned or founded abandoned. He doesn't want the department to be on the hook for the equipment, since the fire agency is funded by tax money.
“It kind of hurts, that someone would take something that’s not theirs and especially something as valuable as turnout gear. It's not necessarily valuable to anyone else but it protects me on every fire that we go to," Hascox told WCNC.
