A gnome was stolen from outside a fire station, sparking a hunt to get him back.
The crews were left devastated after the garden ornament was pinched.
Three of the two-foot tall sculptures sat proudly out the front of the station.
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But a heartless thief pinched one of them.
It happened at Market Drayton Fire Station, in the Shropshire town.
The firefighters alerted cops to the theft last Saturday (6 Apr).
A Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said: “We are saddened to report that we have had one of our firefighter decorated garden ornaments stolen from the station garden.
“The two-foot-tall concrete ornament was one of three firefighter-themed garden ornaments we had proudly displayed.
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“We take great pride in the appearance of our station and put a lot of work into trying to make it colourful and eye-catching for the local community.
“And even grow some vegetables which we donate to the local food bank, and for someone to steal part of our display both angers and saddens us.
“The station and garden are covered by CCTV, and this will be reviewed to see if it can help identify the thief.
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“Our colleagues from West Mercia Police are aware of the theft and are investigating.”
But luckily, after a four-day hunt, the gnome was found yesterday (10 Apr), as reported on What’s The Jam.
The spokesperson added: “We are delighted to report that our colleague who was stolen from our station garden has been found and has returned home.
“We would like to say a massive thank you to Gail, who spotted him by bridge number 63 on the Shropshire Union Canal and contacted us to allow him to be picked up and brought home.
“He will be taking a few days’ leave to recover from his ordeal as he is a bit battered and bruised. He will also be issued with a nice, new, clean uniform before going back on duty.
“He is a person of few words, but he did say, ‘It was a bit scary being stolen from my home station and then left all on my own for a few days.
“’There were a few passing swans and ducks at times, but they started to drive me a bit quackers with all their pecking.
“‘Thank you, Gail, for finding me and letting my colleagues know where I was.’
“We would like to thank everyone who helped find him by sharing our post and for all the lovely comments about him, we really do appreciate it.”
West Merica Police has been approached for comment.
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