Hayle’s Black Bridge lifebuoy vandalised amid poison reports

Walk the path along King George V Walk in Hayle and you would normally expect to see a flash of orange by Black Bridge, the lifebuoy station kept ready for exactly the moment nobody wants to think about. Right now, that ring is gone, and officers want to know why.

The safety equipment taken from Black Bridge

Hayle and St Ives Police say a lifebuoy on Black Bridge, on King George V Walk, has been deliberately damaged and removed from its location. The equipment is provided for public safety, and in the wrong moment its absence could cost someone dear.

📷Credit: Hayle and St Ives Police

A second concern: poison reported in the same area

Officers have also received reports that poison has been left nearby, apparently with the intention of harming animals. No further detail has been given on what was found or exactly where along the walk, but the two reports have been raised in the same appeal.

📷Credit: Hayle and St Ives Police

Black Bridge’s own history

An information plaque fixed into the rock beside the bridge tells a little of its own story. Black Bridge was built by the Cornish Copper Company, and the sluice gates on its upstream side were used during the Second World War to hold back water for fire fighting, a detail most people walking past for the view would never guess.

What Devon and Cornwall Police are asking

Anyone who witnessed suspicious activity, or who has information relating to either the damage to the lifebuoy or the reports of poison, is asked to come forward. Devon and Cornwall Police can be contacted via their website or by calling 101, and 999 should always be used if a crime is in progress.

“Your information could help identify those responsible and prevent further harm to both people and animals,” the force said, thanking the public for their support.

📷Credit: Hayle and St Ives Police