A NEW piece of mountain rescue equipment has been vandalised with anti-vaccine messages.

Keswick Mountain Rescue Team has criticised the culprit who stuck stickers with anti-vax rhetoric on its new stretcher box at Sty Head Pass.

A spokesman for the team said: "We very much doubt any of our supporters would cover the new stretcher box with anti-vaxxer stickers, but whoever it was, it's not appreciated.

"Now one of the team members will have to go up and scrape them off."

The stretcher box was installed in April, replacing the previous wooden box that had been in place since 1938. It is hoped the new box on the pass between Scafell Pike and Great Gable will be more weather resistant.

Since the mountain rescue team took to social media to reveal the vandalism, they have been hit with an outpouring of support.
One runner even made the trek to the stretcher box and removed the messages.