A woman who was raising money for the RNLI by walking around the country was left devastated after her tent was slashed and her shoes were "urinated in" as she pitched up in Sunderland.
Tracey Hannam, 55, had pitched up her tent near Whitburn Beach at about 7.30pm on Sunday, May 8, when she decided to go look for some sea glass. As she walked back to her tent she said she saw a group of about five young people laughing nearby but didn't think much about it.
However, as she got closer she realised her tent door was open and found "knife marks" all around her tent with her belongings strewn across the floor and two battery packs missing. The tent pegs were also ripped out and Tracey discovered that the culprits had also urinated in her walking boots.
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The tent, which Tracey has named Aggie, means the world to Tracey who said it was her "home" and said the incident made her feel "invaded". Tracey had already walked 4,000 miles for her challenge to raise money for the RNLI as she walks the entire UK coast and she feared she would no longer be able to continue.
Tracey, from Bath, explained: "I pitched my tent up and I was just so happy because I had found this beautiful bit of sea glass on the beach and I was going to put it in my tent so I wouldn't lose it.
"When I got to my tent, I realised the door was open and all my stuff was thrown out, they even took the pegs out. It also smelt like they had urinated in my shoes and there were knife hole marks on the tent. It was just a horrible situation, I felt like I was invaded, all I have is Aggie and my bag of 23kilos.
"Aggie is my life, my home, everything I have and to have this happen was just awful. This is my life and if I couldn't have completed this challenge I would have been devastated. I wanted to do this for the RNLI."
But despite the shocking incident, Tracey said she has been left "amazed" by the kindness of strangers. A biker named Kevin and his brother Alan, who heard about the incident, paid for Tracey to stay in the safety of a hotel overnight.
Local RNLI stations also paid for some new boots for Tracey and paid to have 'Aggie' the tent fixed to support her on her fundraising journey. Tracey also thanked Northumbria Police officers who walked with her to safety and said everyone has been "amazing".
Tracey, who has three children and eight grandchildren, said: "The first complete stranger I met from the local area paid for a room at a hotel for me on Sunday night and the RNLI came on Monday morning and said a man called Greg was coming to the hotel.
"Greg from the RNLI took me to an outdoors shop and offered to buy me a new tent but I said if my tent can be fixed we'll get it fixed. They also bought me some new shoes and socks. They offered to get me another hotel room but I said I'm trying to raise money for you!
"The only way I can describe it is I felt like they rescued me. These are the most incredible, strong, and caring people and they care not just by saving people but they care for others in their everyday lives too.
"My followers have also been amazing, I have received so many messages. I've had so many messages from people saying that I can stay in their gardens because they know I feel a bit more vulnerable now. People want to walk with me and have offered up their homes if I need a shower or food it's just been absolutely amazing.
"This has not dismissed my faith in humankind, the people in the North have been absolutely amazing and I just want to thank everyone who has supported me. Something good has come out of something bad."
RNLI Sunderland Lifeboat Station said: "We are really disappointed to learn that the efforts of a FANTASTIC RNLI fundraiser have been disrespected in such a way. Tracey is walking and camping the UK Coastline, that's around 12,000 miles, to raise money for our charity.
"It appears that her tent has been attacked by youths in Whitburn. If you can support Tracey's cause and help her raise funds to help us continue to save lives at sea please give generously."
A Northumbria Police spokesperson said: "We are investigating a report of theft and criminal damage near Whitburn Beach at about 7.30pm on Sunday (May 8).
"It was reported that a group stole items from a tent before damaging it and making off. This behaviour is totally unacceptable and anyone with information can contact police via the ‘Tell Us Something’ page of our website quoting log NP-20220508-0985."
Tracey started her walk in June 2020 after she lost her job due to Covid and has been pitching up her tent ever since. If you would like to follow Tracey's journey, you can do so here and if you would like to donate you can do so here.
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