STAFF at a Bolton funeral home were unable to attend callouts after the tyres were slashed on a private ambulance.

All four tyres were deflated and the passenger wing mirror wrenched off on the Ford Mondeo, outside Bromleys Independent Funeral Service Bolton.

Owner Jason Claire discovered the damage on Monday morning. The car was last used on Saturday night.

The Ford is used to collect the deceased from their home to take them to the funeral parlour.

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But the damage rendered the vehicle unusable for the whole morning into the early afternoon, having a huge impact on the sensitive work Bromleys do.

Mr Claire said: “When I arrived at work I saw all the tyres had been smashed and they had knocked off the mirror.

“There was no other damage, and none of the windows were broken so they weren’t trying to steal anything.

“It’s really unfair, I don’t understand why somebody would do that.

“We have CCTV but we can’t see who did it from the footage, we don’t have a clue who it was and nothing like this has happened before.

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“The car was last used on Saturday so it could’ve happened anytime after that.

“It doesn’t feature our logo but they must’ve known what the vehicle was used for. It’s a black car with blacked-out windows outside a funeral home.”

The car was repaired by mid-afternoon and Mr Claire didn't report it to the police in order to have the car fixed quickly.

He added: “It’s the only private ambulance we have and it’s just very unfair.

“Fortunately the families have been very understanding but we do not need something like this to happen again. The damage has cost us several hundred pounds."

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