Trio of Dales firms are dyeing to deter diesel thieves

Three more Derbyshire businesses have added a drop of diesel dye to their tanks in a bid to protect themselves from criminals.

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 crime-fighting campaign, 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.

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Any drop of fuel taken from those 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.”

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Operation Dynamo is being led by the police and district council as part of the Derbyshire Dales Community Safety Partnership.

Officers will be dipping fuel tanks and to check if specially marked diesel, stolen from those companies, is present and if so, to trace where it has come from.

PC Rachel Baggaley has been involved in the operation and 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.”

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Each diesel dye kit contains enough of the solution to colour 1,000 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 Councillor Lewis Rose OBE, 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.”

Businesses interested in signing up to Operation Dynamo should contact the District Council’s crime and disorder reduction officer Karen Cooper on 01629 761187 or email [email protected].