Coastguard Wanaka Lakes unit training co-ordinator David Balls said the group discovered items were stolen from their storage shed at the town’s A&P grounds on Monday night.
A Pulsar Helion XP38 Thermal Camera in its bright orange protective case, a Handheld VHF and 10litres of fuel were missing during the group’s training night last Monday.
There was no evidence of a break-in but the chain on the roller door was loose and the A&P Society key to the storage shed had also gone missing, Mr Balls said.
President Jonathan Walmisley said people were "just horrified" that someone would steal from an organisation whose volunteers go out to save lives.
"That person who did it could well be needing our services some time," he said.
Coastguard Wanaka Lakes was active on Lakes Wanaka and Hawea and last season was its busiest ever, attending 31 incidents and assisting 45 people, of whom two were found to be suffering from hypothermia.
Mr Walmisley said the thermal imaging camera, which could cost more than $7000, was a life-saving piece of equipment used to look for objects in the water or on the ground where there might be a thermal variation in temperature between the target and the background.
Mr Balls said the group had insurance but it would take time to process the claim.
"We can still operate but we won’t have all the equipment that we need," he said.
Coastguard Lakes Wanaka was fundraising for its new Marine Rescue Centre on the Eely Pt Reserve, which would house a bigger rescue boat and provide much quicker access to Lake Wanaka.
