Young vandals have targeted a school in Hobart’s northern suburbs on the first day of school holidays, resulting in the destruction of at least one solar panel.
Police were called to Austins Ferry Primary School on Cammeray Road around 11:30am on Saturday after receiving reports that several young people were on the roof and causing damage.
Footage uploaded to social media shows three young people kicking and throwing objects at a solar panel, shattering the glass.
Local residents quickly expressed their outrage over the incident, labelling the kids’ actions as ‘disrespectful’ and ‘disgusting’.
A Department of Education spokesperson described the vandalism as “minimal” and said it will be repaired shortly.
“As this event happened out of hours and during school holidays, it is not anticipated there will be any disruption to staff and students when they return to school on 22 July,” the spokesperson told Pulse.
The incident comes weeks after Glenorchy mayor Sue Hickey said everyone should be “extremely concerned” about youth crime and the “terrible problems” it is causing in the municipality.
“The simple fact is they are having a terribly detrimental effect on people’s sense of safety,” she said.
Hickey plans to host a business forum in the near future to gather insights into the issues the community face and work towards developing solutions.
