Valuable medical supplies stolen from Nightshift Care Bus

UPDATE: Since our original story aired, thousands of dollars of medical supplies have been donated to NightShift Street Ministries, allowing the bus to get back up and running for the holiday season.

Original Story: One of the services offered by Surrey’s NightShift Street Ministries is a care bus. For the last four years, it’s provided medical and counselling services to those in need, often giving the homeless and working poor help when they need it most.

Now it’s nearly empty, its medical supplies stolen in a brazen robbery.

“We’re really sad. Really heartbreaking that someone would be callous enough to walk off with all our supplies,” says Barb Orieux, a volunteer nurse with NightShift.

“I had a pregnant lady and I wasn’t able to test her blood sugar, her blood pressure. Just to let them know that they were robbed and I wasn’t able to give the treatment she needed was really sad.”

Everything from stethoscopes to dressing to a heart rate monitor was stolen by the thief or thieves.

“All given by donations over the last few years, so we’re left with very little now for helping the homeless. It’s very sad,” says Orieux.

NightShift isn’t sure how the bus was broken into, but Surrey RCMP are investigating.

While they’ve started to replace the equipment, the total cost will be in the thousands of dollars.

“We’re just hoping someone will hear about this story and step forward and help,” says MaryAnne Connor, President of NightShift.

“Until they do, the bus basically doesn’t operate.”