A BENEVOLENT butcher has leapt to the rescue after a High Crompton shop found itself unable to open after a ram raid attack.
People in the area have been unable to buy bread and milk after the Londis store was targeted in the early hours of Monday.
But as Christmas approaches, when demand is likely to be at its highest, DH Lees has started stocking the items to help customers.
As a result, people can buy bread and milk as well as meat from the Rochdale Road store.
And owner Darrel Lees insisted it was the least he could do.
He said: “When I saw it could be two or three months that the store could be closed for, it wasn’t a hard decision to make.
“I’ve been at our shop for 31 years and there are a lot of pensioners in the village, as well as schoolchildren.
“I may be a butcher’s shop but it’s not too much trouble to have a few pints of milk and a few loaves of bread on the shelves.
“I drove past the Londis before the incident happened then a few hours later people started coming in asking if we sold bread or milk?
“I was like, ‘What’s happened?’ and then they told me about what had gone on, so I sold whatever milk I had in for our baking.
“Then when the milkman came to make his delivery, I just told him, ‘Leave me whatever you’ve got.’”
The store is open until 5pm today (Weds) and from 7am until 5pm tomorrow and Friday and on Saturday and Christmas Eve from 7am until 1pm.
And Mr Lees added he just had to help a fellow shopkeeper in need.
He added: “The people who own Londis have been there for 20-odd years and it’s been in their family for a long time.
“It’s a fellow business. They come in my shop for sandwiches in the morning and my staff go in there.
“It is how it is in a village – if you can help you will do.”
Londis admitted the store and Post Office contained in it will be closed while any repairs to the property are made.
In a social media post, the owners said: “Our store and Post Office will be closed and no newspaper deliveries until further notice.”
Has anyone been caught for ram raiding the post office yet?
What is the world coming too, I feel so sorry for pensioners who rely on the post office for their money. If they don’t have a car how on earth are they getting their money. I just hope that no one is sat at home without food .
The Londis shop is used by some many local people and we miss it so much.
Does anyone know what’s happening to it, as it doesn’t look like anything has happened since the raid.