Haulage firms add dye to fuel after rise in thefts

Longcliffe Calcium Carbonates, David Bradley Haulage and Ben Bennett Jnr are the latest companies to sign up for “Operation Dynamo”, which is being run by Derbyshire Police and Derbyshire Dales District Council.

As part of the operation, bottles of special dye have been mixed into the firms’ fuel stores and warning signs saying the diesel is marked have been put on every vehicle.

Any drop of fuel taken from either the fuel stores or from the tanks of their fleet vehicles can then be traced back to the companies, meaning that diesel thieves can be caught “red-handed” and linked to a particular crime.

David Bradley, whose firm is based in the Matlock area, said: “Protecting our fuel is very important because it’s our biggest expense.

“We have a lot of security measures already in place, such as anti-siphon caps on the tanks, but having this dye is a great idea, too.

“It acts as a deterrent to thieves and anything that does that has got to be worth it.”

As part of Operation Dynamo, police officers will be dipping fuel tanks to check if any of the specially-marked diesel, stolen from specific companies, is present.

PC Rachel Baggaley, who has been involved in the operation, said: “The dye is a really useful tool in helping local businesses protect themselves.

“Having fuel stolen has a huge impact on anyone, in particular companies with larger vehicles, so I’d urge any businesses in the area who want to take on this extra level of protection to get in touch.”

Each diesel dye kit contains enough of the solution to colour 40,000 litres of diesel, a sign alerting people that the fuel is marked, and stickers to be placed on the tanks of vehicles or on storage tanks.

Derbyshire Dales District Council leader Coun Lewis Rose, who is also chairman of the Derbyshire Dales Community Safety Partnership, said: “I’m delighted more local businesses have signed up to an important crime-fighting initiative that is helping maintain the Dales’ status as one of the safest in the whole of the UK.”

Operation Dynamo was first launched in the Derbyshire Dales last year and has attracted some of the biggest names in the haulage and quarrying industries.

Firms to have previously signed up include Tarmac, which uses the kits at its Dene Quarry site in Matlock; Bleaklow Industries based at Backdale Quarry at Longstone Edge; and haulage firms K&H Bakewell Ltd and RD Geeson Ltd of Middleton-by-Wirksworth.

It was revealed last month that there has been a slight rise in the number of fuel thefts.

PC Chad Fullerton, from Matlock Bath, Cromford and Bonsall Safer Neighbourhood Team, said that such thefts can be “crippling to businesses that have a fleet of vehicles”.

He added: “We’re trying to help local businesses protect themselves with these kits, which are fantastic in the way they work.

“Thieves will target fuel tanks if they think they are unprotected, but adding the dye means that we can tell if it is stolen.

“Criminals know this, and if they see that the diesel is protected they will think twice about going to steal it.

“The theft of fuel doesn’t just affect businesses, though, and we will be giving advice to drivers as well about what they can do to protect themselves from thieves as well.”

There have been several thefts of fuel from vehicles in the Derbyshire area in recent weeks.

One lorry was attacked overnight in the High Peak, after the driver parked up to sleep in a lay-by on the A628 Woodhead Pass.

Meanwhile, a 38-year-old man has been arrested and bailed in connection with fuel thefts from two vehicles in Buxton. In one case, the fuel tank was completely removed from a van parked in a lay-by in Boarstones Lane.