Footpath bridge close to Huntingdonshire National Trust site destroyed by vandals

A FOOTPATH bridge in Houghton destroyed by vandals will cost £2,000 to replace and a second will need to be repaired.

The eight metre-long bridge off The Thicket path, which provides access to Houghton Meadow, was vandalised between June 30 and July 1 while a second bridge was targeted on July 11-12 when its handrails were ripped off.

Paul Boothman, a parish councillor in Houghton, said the attacks would have taken a “considerable amount of effort and time to cause that much damage”.

“The thing that has shocked us most is the level of violence they put into destroying it,” he added. “They have smashed it into smithereens. I would not have liked to come across the people who did it considering what they have done to an inanimate object.

“I have no idea who has done it or why. That’s the really striking thing ... why they would have carried out such wanton destruction for what appears to be for no reason? The bridge next to it has also been damaged but not as badly.

“Nothing has happened for a week but who is to say they won’t come back and finish the job on the other bridge.”

Mr Boothman said that the bridge would need to be replaced soon as it provides a link to one of Houghton’s biggest meadows and a circular path around the area during autumn and winter when water levels are higher.

A Cambridgeshire County Council spokesman said a replacement bridge would cost £2,000 and the other £200 to repair.

INFORMATION: If you have any details about the vandalism, call Cambridgeshire police on 101.