VANDALS have caused major damage to a vintage train at Dartmoor Railway, causing thousands of pounds worth of damage.

Windows were smashed windows in all nine carriages of the Polar Express in the railway company’s headquarters at Meldon near Okehampton overnight on Sunday, July 2. The Polar Express carriages are used at Christmas to take children on trips.

The incident is the latest in a spate of vandalism in and around Okehampton. The town’s allotments on Fatherford Road were targeted on Sunday night last week, June 25, with intruders smashing windows in three sheds, including the community shed.

On Wednesday night, June 28, vandals dismantled a dry stone wall along the footpath between Ball Hill and Okehampton College, throwing rocks on the path.

‘I’m just so disappointed,’ said Karen Percival, clerk of Okehampton United Charity, which owns the land the wall stands on as well as the allotments. ‘We haven’t been able to repair it yet; rebuilding a dry stone wall is a specialist job, so it will be a big expense.’

Karen, who has lived in Okehampton since she was a child, said that the recent vandalism was much worse than any she had experienced before.

‘We do get the occasional graffiti in the park in Okehampton but vandalism now seems to be rising in severity. The people involved need to stop and think, because it is not benefiting the town and they could get into serious trouble. It is just so unnecessary.’

The police have been informed about all three incidents.