Pediatric medical equipment stolen from fire truck in Spokane Valley

Investigators with the Spokane Valley Fire Department are looking for clues as to who stole a box of emergency pediatric equipment from a fire truck when it called this week.

Firefighters responded to a cardiac arrest call on East Main Avenue between Felts Road and University Road at around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday when the bright yellow suitcase was stolen. A storage compartment on the engine was left open while the crew treated the patient and the box was the only thing in it, said Fire Department Marshal Greg Rogers.

“They probably thought it was an opportunity because they didn’t know exactly what was inside,” said Rogers.

One theory is that the thief hoped to find drugs in the suitcase, Rogers said, but there weren’t any. “We don’t skip something like that,” he said.

The box contained equipment that firefighters might need when treating a child, including special air hoses and masks. There was nothing particularly valuable in the box, said Rogers.

Investigators looked at video footage from nearby surveillance cameras in hopes of identifying the thief, Rogers said. If someone knows where the box is, it can be returned to any Spokane Valley Fire Department.

Rogers said it was not normal for firefighters to have their equipment stolen from a truck.

“It’s a first in the six years I’ve been here,” he said.