Thieves force mobile libraries off the road
LIBRARY vans were forced off the road after diesel thieves raided their depot for the third time.
About £1,500 of fuel has been drained out of the vans parked at the council depot in Main Road, Skirlaugh.
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RAIDED: Thieves have stolen diesel from library vans parked at East Riding council offices in Skirlaugh. Picture: Jerome Ellerby
In the latest raid, intruders drove across a field next to the site, climbed the fence and siphoned fuel from several vans.
It left one of the council's large travelling libraries and two smaller library vans unable to start their rounds.
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Mobile libraries manager Katherine Chadwick said: "It disrupts the service and means we don't get the vans out until lunchtime.
"Often, they leave the tanks totally empty and we have to get a delivery from Annie Reed Road in Beverley.
"Sometimes, they ruin the fuel caps and we don't have spare capacity.
"We can't just send a dust cart out there and throw the books out of the back."
Rural communities rely on the service provided by East Riding Council, which operates five travelling libraries.
They are huge vehicles that remain in a village for the whole day and provide services such as internet and e-mail access as well as being linked to the main library management system.
The smaller library vans do not have as many facilities but are able to tour several villages in a day and can be parked more easily.
Retired policeman Bill Buckle, 63, of York Road, Wetwang, said: "The people committing these crimes don't think about what they're doing.
"Stealing diesel out of a public service vehicle could stop the service.
"The library van has been coming to this village for as long as I can remember. It's absolutely vital for people in the village who haven't got their own means of transport."
Comments
by Beverlonian79
Monday, January 23 2012, 4:03PM
“If they catch em they should throw the book at them.”
by red_karen
Wednesday, January 18 2012, 8:14AM
“Billyofhull, so the complaints would be minimal would they?? There are massive campaigns right across the country against library closures, including judicial reviews. These campaigns are not being run by the workers, they are being run by the community groups who need them. As you clearly have absolutely no idea what a library actually is, may I respectfully suggest you visit one and find out about its services and the needs of the people who use it so that your next comment can actually be informed!”
by Wellbeloved3
Tuesday, January 17 2012, 8:56AM
“Billyofhull, your comments are ill considered. Drawn to it`s logical conclusion you would have NO public services at all, since by their very nature each individual service will only be used by a small section of the community. I don`t go out at night- so why have street lights? I have never been to a council customer service centre - so why not close them? It`s called living in a civilised society where services are paid for by the public for the use of those who choose to use them or need to use them. Just because you personally have no use for a library does not mean that they should be abandoned. I am not advocating lavish spending for the sake of it but rather a balanced view as to the kind of services we can and should pay for the benefit of society as a whole, and on balance (and it is a judgement call) I think you are wrong on this one.”
by Park Training Initiative ( ptihull )
Monday, January 16 2012, 11:26PM
“GlenluieJim why should the tax payer give out free books, cd's newspapers etc? they are made as commercial items, go buy them like most people do.
Id love to see the cost of opening a library for a year including stock valuation then divide it by members using it. i reckon it would be about £100 a person at least
about 0.001% of the population paid for by everyone elses taxes.
scrap them, the complaints would be minimal”
by GlenluieJim
Monday, January 16 2012, 5:18PM
“BillyOfHull - you obviously do not use the libraries, be it for loaning books, research in the reference section, obtaining information, reading newspapers, accessing the internet and (in some) socialising. The mobile libraries cannot offer all of these services, but do offer a good range, especially for the elderly and infirm, and for those in remote locations. My local library (I live in a small village in Scotland, so I have a 7 mile journey anyway) has a cafe and offers also video, DVD, CD and talking book loans as well as a Braille service.”
by choochoochoo
Monday, January 16 2012, 4:46PM
“David Nivea, are you suffering from Superiority Complex?”
by David_Nivea
Monday, January 16 2012, 3:17PM
“For a minute there, I thought all the books had been stolen.
Hahaha.
Silly me, imagining that people might want to learn stuff.
@billyofhull: I'm in the library right now. It's very busy. Philistine. [Look it up]”
by Strangley
Monday, January 16 2012, 2:11PM
“They really need to throw the book at these people when they are caught!”
by Wellbeloved3
Monday, January 16 2012, 1:41PM
“I totally (100% +) agree that the taxes on fuel are a disgrace. However , to use this as an excuse for theft is simply that - an excuse. It is making it acceptable - which it isn`t. We are constantly being "softened up" to accept ever declining moral standards by accepting as inevitable what is incorrectly labelled as low level crime. Time to stop making excuses for these scumbags. The more we accept weak excuses the worse it will become by default.”
by Park Training Initiative ( ptihull )
Monday, January 16 2012, 12:45PM
“isnt it about time to close all libraries anyway? old fashioned and if you work out the costs involved per person who uses it i bet it would be seen as a massive waste of cash and not exactly a necessity these days.
with all the cuts abound i would scrap the lot of them. they are a luxury item and waste of taxpayers cash.”