Vandals grind quarry work to a halt

Dec 2 2011 by Alison Lowson, Perthshire Advertiser Friday

VANDALS have dealt Perth’s sole working quarry a crushing blow following the latest in a series of costly raids.

Wilful damage done to plant equipment at some point last weekend meant that no work could be done on Monday, costing operator Tarmac Ltd a staggering £10,000 in lost productivity.

And repairing the windscreen and side glass panels of the contractor-owned excavator – smashed by readily available stones – cost about £1500.

Police and the site manager, Bill Judge, believe the culprits were most likely unruly youths who had bypassed locked gates and intruder alarms at the isolated Friarton quarry.

Tyre trail

On this occasion, the only potential lead detected by crime scene investigators was what appears to be a tyre trail left behind by a motorcycle.

“We’ve got alarms and what have you but you can’t deny total access to the site due to the terrain, plus we’re near public footpaths, so they always manage to get in somehow,” explained a clearly frustrated Mr Judge.

“This is not a new thing – we’ve been hit on and off by vandals for many years, and of course you can never make up the lost productivity.”

As well as four full-time staff and two crushing contractors, between 12 and 20 haulage contractors are presently engaged the site, which is believed to date back around 100 years.

“Our biggest crushing contract at the moment is with RJT Excavations Ltd, a subcontractor to Balfour Beatty for the Beauly to Denny power line supplying crushed materials for access roads leading to pylon construction sites,” he said.

While occasional intruders appeared to use the quarry as a playground, others were more malicious and destructive, such as the crew that forced entry into a plant machine about two months ago.

“They actually managed to get it started, a large machine with a hammer on it, and put it right through an old scrap bitumen tank, which was an incredibly dangerous thing to do – someone could easily get seriously injured,” he said.

Other instances of vandalism have included gauges smashed on a drill rig, but one of the most costly incidents took place a few years ago, after intruders smashed up a £400,000 crusher unit.

“It was laid up for about three weeks while parts were sourced to repair it, so you can imagine the cost in lost productivity at around £10,000 a day,” he said.

A Tayside Police spokesman said that due to the quarry’s isolated location, it was essentially a sitting duck.

“All we really have to go on at the moment is what appears to be motorcycle tracks, which may or may not be connected,” he said.

“We would like to hear from anyone who lives in the area who may have seen any suspicious activity around or in the site last weekend, particularly youths mucking around on motorbikes.”

lContact Tayside Police on 0300 111 2222 or pass information anonymously to Crimestoppers by calling 0800 555 111.