Authorities in eastern Iowa, Monday, recovered a fire truck that was reported stolen late last week from southern Iowa’s Union County. Cedar Rapids Police Department Public Safety/Communications Coordinator Greg Buelow told KJAN News a tip from the public led Police to recover the 2004 Ford F-350 Super Duty grass/field fire attach truck late Monday afternoon.

He says the Police Department received a few calls at around 3:30-p.m.from residents in the vicinity of 29th Avenue and Huxley Avenue, that a there was a truck with fire department logos and lights parked on the street. Officers arriving on the scene found the vehicle had not been damaged, and the keys were still inside. Their investigation revealed the vehicle may have been there for as long as a week.

The truck was brought to the Cedar Rapids Police Department headquarters and turned over to officials with the Lorimor Fire Department, this (Tuesday) morning. Beulow says they have no idea why someone would take a vehicle that is important to public safety and the prevention of property damage. While not wanting to comment on the investigation into the theft, Beulow said more often than not in these cases, the public will provide the clues.

He says “It’s going to be other people. Somebody’s going to be out there bragging about it, talking about how they ‘pulled a good stunt,’ or whatever reason why they did it. I would encourage anybody with information about who did this to contact local law enforcement or the Cedar Rapids Police Department.” In the Cedar Rapids area, you can call 1-800-CS-Crime. All callers can remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a cash reward.

Beulow says he doesn’t know why, or under what circumstances someone would steal a fire truck. The bottom line is, there’s nothing funny about it. Besides the fact the crime is a Theft, the person or persons responsible took an emergency vehicle out of service. The theft left a town or township without a piece of fire apparatus for a week. He said the crime “Is not something people should be proud of.”

The truck and its equipment were valued at $15,000. Beulow, whose background is in the fire service, says he’s glad who ever stole the truck left it intact, because it’s something many small communities cannot afford to replace.