Theft from ambulance for sick kids ‘mindless’

A founder of a custom-built ambulance service set up specifically to provide transport for very sick children has described as "mindless" the theft of €800 worth of equipment from the vehicle while it was on display at the National Ploughing Championships.

Tony Heffernan and his wife Mary, who lost two of their children to Batten disease, established the ‘Bumbleance’ to provide an interactive ambulance specifically designed for children. It has the capacity to operate the latest medical equipment and internal hospital communication systems as well as carrying special entertainment for the child such as a Playstation 3 and iPad Mini.

Yesterday, Mr Heffernan was at the Ploughing Championships to showcase the pioneering service. He said: “While I was explaining the whole process to the parent of a child how to use our service for their sick child from Crumlin Hospital back to the Midlands, a fellow came in behind me.