On the eve of what might turn out to be the year's worst storm, a piece of snow removal equipment has been stolen in Annapolis.

Police said a park maintenance worker told them he discovered that the mechanism that is used to lift and maneuver a snow plow blade was missing Tuesday morning when he arrived for work at the maintenance yard in the 200 block of Truxton Park Road. The bolts that attached the mechanism to the truck were on the ground by the vehicle.

"The timing on this is bad," said Art Thomas, the maintenance administrator for the city's Recreation and Parks Department.

The agency's workers, who plow around the Recreation Center and other city facilities, sometimes are summoned with their nine trucks to help the Department of Public Works with clearing roads and other areas, he said.

Thomas said he got another snow plow pump from the city garage to prepare for the weekend storm.