THE chairman of Fermoy Tidy Towns has condemned vandalism which caused over €1,000 worth of damage to flower pots and planters around the town.

Councillor Noel McCarthy described as “incredibly disheartening” the acts of vandalism which occurred over the past month and he called on those with information to come forward to An Garda Síochána.

Mr McCarthy said that two weeks ago two large flower pots worth approximately €500 each were tipped over and broken in Brian Boru Square and last week a large pot was turned over in the Meadows.

“The work that our volunteers have put in over the past several years has really transformed the town, and it’s an awful kick in the teeth to see such horrible behaviour trying to undo all that great work.” 

Mr McCarthy said he felt the vandalism was more likely to have been caused by what he called “random acts of irresponsible blackguarding” rather than as the result of a co-ordinated campaign.

“The people who did this need to be named and shamed, and taught a lesson, and I would ask anyone who knows anything about this to come forward to the gardaí,” he said.

Paul Kavanagh, project manager of Fermoy Tidy Towns, said the vandalism was very dispiriting, and volunteers had a lot of other work around the town on which they would prefer to concentrate.

“We’re busy putting up lights in the Square, and we have a load of other jobs we’d much rather be doing ahead of the Christmas,” he said.

Mr Kavanagh said that temporary repairs to the damaged pots at Brian Boru Square had been carried out by the Avondhu Blackwater Partnership, whom he thanked for their work, and he said the vandalism had been reported to the gardaí. He added that due to the expense of the flowerpots, it was unlikely Fermoy Tidy Towns would be able to replace them, and he echoed Mr McCarthy’s call for witnesses to come forward.

“We’ve all worked too long and too hard to make Fermoy a nicer place, and the people who did this need to be collared, and they need to cough up,” he said.

Fermoy Garda station can be contacted at 025 82100.