St John NT trades Tennant Creek ambulances after thieves steal keys

St John NT has been forced to swap out its Tennant Creek ambulances after thieves stole the vehicles’ keys, with ambos warning the raid could affect emergency medical services.

The keys to multiple St John NT ambulances were stolen from the Tennant Creek depot on Monday. Picture: Che Chorley

Paramedics in Tennant Creek have been forced to take extraordinary steps to protect their ambulances after thieves made off with the keys to multiple vehicles on Monday.

St John NT director of ambulance services Andrew Thomas said the keys were stolen from the Tennant Creek depot while the operational crew were away in the early hours of the morning.

Mr Thomas said the inside of the station was damaged but no one was injured in the raid.

“To ensure the security of our ambulance vehicles, St John NT is in the process of transferring emergency vehicles to Alice Springs to have them rekeyed, and Tennant Creek station has been resourced with vehicles from Alice Springs,” he said.

“While this is a major inconvenience and cost to our services, St John has contingencies in place and the community can be assured our services in Tennant Creek or Alice Springs will not be affected.”

St John Ambulance NT director of ambulance services Andrew Thomas. Picture: Che Chorley

Mr Thomas said he was disappointed by the burglary which potentially put the community at risk.

“This could affect our ability to provide essential emergency medical assistance,” he said.

An NT Police spokesman on Tuesday said the keys had since been recovered.

“There was no reported ram raid or drugs being stolen,” the spokesman said.

“Police have identified a number of suspects and investigations are ongoing.”