Archaeologists stung by thieves while in Warwick Hospital's A&E

Archaeologists are appealing for help in tracking down £13,000 worth of equipment after it was stolen from '¨Warwick Hospital's car park.
Archeologists has their equipment stolen from their van which was parked at a car park at Warwick Hospital.Archeologists has their equipment stolen from their van which was parked at a car park at Warwick Hospital.
Archeologists has their equipment stolen from their van which was parked at a car park at Warwick Hospital.

The Archaeologists from the Worcestershire Archive and Archaeology Service were working on a site near Stratford on Friday (January 5), when one of them got injured and so they packed up and went to the hospital.

When they returned to their van they found that someone had broken into it and made off with their equipment.

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Jem Brewer, one of the archaeologists who has been working on the site, said: “We were on the site near Stratford and one of my colleagues had an accident so we decided to take them to Warwick Hospital’s A&E department. We packed up all the kit and went to the hospital and parked there.

“Thankfully our colleague is okay but when we returned to the van we saw that someone had jimmied open the back of the van and took cameras and survey equipment, which was about £13,000 worth of equipment.

“It happened when we were inside the hospital which was between 4.15pm and 6pm.

“It is a lot to replace the equipment but we are concerned about the data on the equipment.

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“It is crucial to the projects that we are working on and we don’t have any way of replicating it.

“The data is from different sites across the region and it is irreplaceable.”

The archaeological team are appealing for the public to keep an eye out for the equipment.

Jem said: “The equipment includes a Leica GS08 Smart Antenna (serial number 1731151), a Leica CS10 Field Controller (serial number 2521667), a carbon fibre GPS staff and a Nikon D50 camera (serial number 7444352).

“The Leica equipment has a distinctive red carrying case.

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“If someone sees them or is offered them please call Warwickshire Police. They are also welcome to contact us directly through the website: https://www.explorethepast.co.uk/contact-us/

“If the person who took it all could please return the controller, which records the data we can access it all.”

A spokesperson from Warwickshire Police said: “On January 5 Warwickshire Police received a report of theft from a motor vehicle.

“It is reported that, between the hours of 4.15pm and 6.15pm, a vehicle which was parked in a car park on Lakin Road, Warwick was broken into and had items removed.

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“Police are currently investigating and enquiries are on-going.

“If you noticed anything suspicious in the area around the time of the incident please contact Warwickshire Police on 101 and quote incident number 305 of 5 January.