Imagine walking out the door to go to work in the morning and finding your vehicle gone.
It's a situation that many residents of the Humboldt area found themselves in this summer.
Vehicles of all shapes and sizes went missing in the Humboldt area this summer, stolen usually overnight from homes and businesses.
Everything from boats to trucks and cars have been taken from both the city and rural area over the past three and a half months for a total of at least 15 stolen vehicles, a number which is pretty unusual for this area.
According to Cpl. Randy Wittig of the Humboldt RCMP, the circumstances of the thefts vary from report to report. There are cases, he noted, where unlocked vehicles have been taken, started with keys left in the ignition or elsewhere in the vehicle.
But there have also been cases where vehicles that are locked, without any keys left inside, have been stolen as well.
These are mainly older vehicles, he indicated, without many of the anti-theft features of late-model cars and trucks.
"Anyone who knows anything about stealing... can steal an older car pretty quick," Wittig noted.
None of the vehicles have been stolen from inside garages, Wittig pointed out, as no investigation has involved a break and enter along with a vehicle theft.
Most of the stolen vehicles have been recovered, the majority in the Rose Valley area, though others have been located locally or in Saskatoon.
Some have even been recovered before the owners noticed them missing, which was the case with a golf cart that RCMP found, which has not yet been reported missing.
The investigations into all the thefts remain open and active. Only one has resulted in charges against an individual so far.
The RCMP believe the people committing these crimes fall into two categories: transients passing through the community and local young people.
The vehicles showing up somewhere in this area RCMP believe were stolen by local young people looking for a joyride. Others that are showing up out of town, or in Saskatoon, they believe are being targeted by people travelling through, looking for another ride.
How can you protect your vehicle from theft?
The simplest way is to ensure your vehicle is locked and that the keys are not inside, Wittig indicated.
Also, he advised, do not leave valuables in a car.
Some of those vehicles they believe were taken for joyrides were likely taken, he believes, after the culprits saw something inside the vehicle they wanted to take.
"They break in to steal something, are digging around... and find a spare key," he said.
The RCMP have been trying to educate the public about how to better protect their property from thieves, but many who refuse to believe that their property is at risk in this community have also refused to take their advice.
"We've heard, 'We don't lock our doors, because it's Humboldt'," Wittig said. One person even stated, "We shouldn't have to. It's Humboldt."
But while Humboldt is still relatively a safe community, it is growing, and people should take measures to protect themselves, their homes and their vehicles.
"People have to be aware that Humboldt is getting busier. There are more transient people.... (and residents) need to secure their personal possessions," Wittig noted.
RCMP are taking measures to help safeguard the changing community. They have increased members on night shifts, and started members on foot patrols at night in May.
Having officers walking the streets has, Wittig feels, stopped some of the common summer crimes from occurring again this year.
"It's a great deterrent for mischiefs and petty thefts," he said.
Officers have also been able to watch out for the youths who walk around, checking door handles of cars, looking for things to steal or a vehicle for a joyride, Wittig noted.
For their part, some residents of Humboldt have taken measures to further protect their homes by having alarm systems installed. However, false alarms from these residential systems - an issue for Humboldt businesses with alarm systems for some time - also went up over the summer.
In Humboldt alone, there were 48 false alarms made to police from alarm systems between June 1 and August 31. The increase is due in part, Wittig believes, to the increased number of alarm systems being installed.
But, he added, local RCMP have also come to believe that some of this summer's wicked storms played a part in that increase. On nights when there were lightning storms, multiple false alarms came in.
Power surges or power flickers due to storms seem to set alarm systems off when there's no emergency, he indicated. On June 30, for instance, when there was an electrical storm, three false alarms came in.
"We noticed a pattern... in June and July," Wittig noted.
