A PIONEERING robot which helps police in Notts with underwater searches could be forced to move away from its base.
The SARbot contains a sonar and an electronic grabbing arm which helps to find people and pull them out of the water.
It is based at Trent Lock and has been used by Notts and Derbyshire police, as well as forces further afield.
It has also been used in Wales in the search for missing schoolgirl April Jones.
The robot was developed by retired Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service officer Duncan Winsbury.
But yesterday he warned that a cash crisis meant it could be forced to move from its Sawley base.
The unit, which relies on donations, has been using a Waterways Trust building for free since August but this was only a temporary arrangement and it now needs to find about £2,000 a month to sign an official lease with the trust by the end of the month.
Mr Winsbury said: "People are doing all they can but it's not looking promising. We are providing a response service right now but the most likely place we would go to after the end of the month is the West Midlands. We'd rather have a response based here and are desperate to stay because the location is so good."
The SARbot, or Search and Rescue Robot system, is designed to help 999 services quickly locate and pull people from deep water within a 90-minute window, in which it is possible they can still be resuscitated before damage is caused to the brain. It can also be used to help police search for bodies.
Mr Winsbury, 49, who lives in Sawley, said the response from the public had been "phenomenal" since the service was officially launched last month.
He said: "If we had the funding, we could provide a rescue team in nearly every area of the UK because we've been contacted by volunteers who want to help, from police, ambulance services and the RNLI. We've been getting one-off amounts but need regular income.
"We are asking the Government for funding and have got MPs working on that for us but we've got no response yet."
Sergeant Nick Sawdon, a dive supervisor with Notts Police underwater search unit, said: "It would be a shame to see it move. There's certainly a chance it could save someone's life."
To donate to the unit, visit www.sarbot.co.uk.
