LIFE-SAVING equipment was among possessions worth £19,000 stolen by heartless burglars from the home of a volunteer medic.

Thieves broke into Paul Addison’s garage in Turks Road, taking all of his emergency medical kit – including two defibrillators – as well as valuable electronics.

The burglars also took an Xbox One and a £6,000 car diagnostics tool, smashed up a high-definition TV, and stole a £4,500 trailer belonging to Mr Addison’s father Douglas, who he moved in with following the death of his brother Stephen in December 2013.

Mr Addison, who is also a coach driver, said: “This is life-saving stuff that these scumbags have taken and I have paid for most of that kit myself. Medics usually have their own collection of kit that we have built up over the years so that we can help people when we aren’t on duty.

“It’s really not cheap to buy, but the truth is that it’s not really of much use to anyone other than a medic.

“I would like to appeal to whoever has taken my medical kit to return it to me because it is important equipment that makes a big difference to me but isn’t really useful to them.”

Mr Addison, who has been involved in volunteering for 15 years with the St John Ambulance and the North West Ambulance Service, returned home on August 2 to find the intruders had forced their way in through the back of his garage.

And because the theft occurred in the garage rather than the house itself, his insurers have only been willing to pay out £2,000 in compensation.

The incident has left Paul and his father, aged 59, so shaken that they are now considering moving house.

He added: “I moved down from Little Lever to be with my father after Stephen passed away and it has obviously been a very difficult time for all of us.

“Sadly, because of this we are thinking very seriously about whether we will have to move again now.”

Police reported last week that they were trying to track down an offender suspected of being responsible for a series of break-ins that had taken place in Radcliffe, and Mr Addison believes action must be taken to address growing fears in the area.

He said: “I would like to see more patrols out in the area and more checks being made to recover these items. But as far as the police are concerned they don’t have the manpower or the resources to handle this sort of thing as people would like.

“People are losing thousands of pounds worth of stuff, it’s no small matter. They know there has been a spate of burglaries in the area so something more needs doing.”

No arrests have been made and police inquiries are ongoing.

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

* Man wanted in connection with series of break-ins: see page 4