A volunteer-led heritage railway has said it has suffered a spate of vandalism, which has seen one of its mini JCB diggers left completely destroyed.
Staffordshire’s Churnet Valley Railway (CVR) said the vehicle had been awaiting collection from its maintenance team and had only been on its land for 24 hours.
But that was enough time for at least one vandal to leave the digger unusable.
“Controls have been ripped off, electrical components torn out, the dipstick removed and, unbelievably, dirt and grit poured into the engine sump,” a CVR spokesperson said.
“This wasn’t an abandoned machine. It wasn’t causing anyone any harm.
“It was simply waiting to be collected after helping our volunteers maintain the railway.”
That was not all as a newly fitted fence at the site of the future Leek Station was also found in bits.
“Rather than being damaged accidentally, the fence has been carefully unscrewed, paling by paling, with the screws removed as well.”