Vandals attack hospital with air guns

Feb 12 2010 by Lorraine Howard, Irvine Herald

VANDALS are running rampage in the grounds of Ayrshire Central Hospital, firing air guns at buildings and smashing windows.

The hoodlums are running up thousands of pounds worth of damage to the buildings including the children’s unit, Rainbow House, the WRVS tearoom and Eglinton Medical Practice.

At the weekend they smashed 12 windows of the Eglinton clinic, running up a repair bill of almost £20,000.

But this is not a new problem at the grounds of Ayrshire Central as the vandals regularly defy the anti-vandal paint to climb on top of buildings and smash skylight windows.

One worker who asked not to be named, said: “It’s a never-ending cycle of vandalism, I don’t understand why they would target a hospital.

“We even had special paint put on to try and stop them.

“The latest fad is to shoot out the windows with air rifles, it’s ridiculous and dangerous.

“And it’s an expensive clean-up operation.”

John Wright, Director of Information and Clinical Support Services said: “Over the last few weeks, there have been four incidences of vandalism around the Eglinton Medical Practice and Rainbow House, in the grounds of Ayrshire Central Hospital.

“Security around our sites is of paramount importance to NHS Ayrshire and Arran, and we have been working with the local police to address the situation. Additional security officers are now patrolling the site.

“Both these facilities provide much needed care for people from the local community, and in the case of Rainbow House, throughout Ayrshire.

“We would appeal to members of the public to respect the patients, staff and visitors who are using these facilities.”