BIRTHDAY girl Hazel Smith clocked up 30 yesterday but had little reason to celebrate after a family holiday in Cornwall turned into a nightmare.

Thieves drove off with their car and cleaned out more than £2,000 worth of belongings from the boot before setting the Peugeot ablaze in a field.

Hazel, her boyfriend, and ten year old son Christopher were forced to abandon their holiday and return to Accrington in a tow truck, pulling their fire-damaged car.

Hazel, of Dill Hall Lane, Church, said: "It'sbeen a disaster, not a holiday."

The family, camping at Boscastle, set out for the day in the car, locking their belongings in the boot rather than leave them in the tent.

They parked at Rocky Valley, near Tintagel, to walk the cliff path. The car was stolen while they were gone.

Hazel said: "Everything we had was in the boot. We did not have one item of clothing left, apart from what we were wearing."

Soccer-crazy Christopher was heartbroken. He lost two Liverpool kits, a Blackburn Rovers goalie kit, a Rovers shirt and two England strips. Also taken were camera equipment, Hazel's handbag and birthday presents.

Hazel, a clerical assistant at Wirral Foods Ltd, Great Harwood, praised the local police for their help and for arranging to get them home.

The couple are now checking where they stand on insurance cover for their personal belongings.

Hazel added: "We are not sure whether the car is recoverable or whether they will write it off."

Camelford police are investigating.

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