Teignbridge Council has appealed for help in flushing out the 'mindless morons' who forced the closure of a new £23,000 toilet for the disabled just hours after it opened to the public.
The new facilities at Newton Abbot market were opened on Friday morning, just one feature in Teignbridge Council's £1.8m market revamp and part of its Operation Smart-Loo pledge to provide safe, clean toilets.
But by 4pm the disabled loos were out of action, the electronic door mechanism wrecked, and an anonymous council employee posted up an angry note for all to see.
It read: 'Some mindless morons (better known as schoolkids) [have] vandalised the doors. 'We TDC will have the door fixed as quickly as we can.'
A council spokesman distanced himself from the unofficial and unsanctioned comments, but urged the public to help catch the culprits. 'This type of damage is unacceptable and has cost Teignbridge more than £200,000 over the last financial year,' he said.
'We strongly urge anybody with information about this, or any other, incident to contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. 'The crime number for this incident is JN07536.
'It is free to call Crimestoppers, information can be given anonymously and there are sometimes rewards offered for information that leads to an arrest.'
Cllr Jim Grimble, who holds responsibility for the district's public toilets, said he was 'sorely disappointed by the lack of respect' the vandals had shown. In total, £155,000 has been put aside to improve the town centre facilities.
This includes the new toilets on the site once occupied by the Chicken Café. A ceremony to mark the official opening of the vandalised toilets has been postponed.