THE police have warned Haslemere residents to be on their guard after a quantity of a hazardous chemical was stolen from The Herons Leisure Centre in Kings Road, Haslemere, last Friday night . Officers are still desperately trying to track down two three-litre plastic bottles (pictured right) containing sulphuric acid, which is used by the leisure centre as a drain cleaner, after thieves broke into an outbuilding around 11-30 pm. Footage from closed-circuit television cameras at the leisure centre show two males on BMX bicycles within the vicinity at the time of the offence. Haslemere police sergeant Rob Harris, who is investigating the offence, explained: "We need to find these bottles as soon as we can and urge anyone with any information to come forward. "The bottles are clearly marked with warning labels and contain a dark brown liquid which has an acidic odour. It is a corrosive chemical and will cause severe burns if it comes into contact with skin." Should anybody come into contact with the chemical, they should remove any contaminated clothing and shoes, rinse with plenty of water, drink plenty of water and seek medical attention immediately. Sgt Harris continued: "Ideally we would like the bottles returned to us intact, as obviously there are also concerns that they bottles will be dumped somewhere, which could have disastrous consequences for the environment." Anyone with any information is asked to contact Sgt Rob Harris on 0845 125 2222, or, anonymously, Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
