The Poppy of Honour WWI memorial has been damaged
The Poppy of Honour 2018 WWI memorial recently unveiled in Cale Park, Wincanton, has been damaged. The steel structure is double-glazed on both sides, and the two panes on one side have been fractured. The fracture originates from a point of the steel frame that exhibits visual evidence of a significant impact, and the associated cracks extend across a large area of the face of the Poppy.
Poppy of Honour project leader Terry Williams said he was by the memorial around noon on 19th October, when three young men approached in an agitated state of mind, claiming that the memorial glorified war. Terry politely asked them to leave, and they did. At around 12:15pm, Terry crossed the park to the Cale Park Kitchen to make use of their toilet facilities, and discovered the damage upon returning to the Poppy a few minutes later.
The damaged panes will now undergo temporary repairs to prevent any further cracking. Replacement glass panels will be fitted after completion of a Somerset tour planned throughout November.
Each side of the Poppy has two 5.2mm glass panes, with a UV stabilisation film to filter out 89% of UV light to prevent the poppies from dulling. The pairs of panes are filled with argon gas to prevent damage from condensation.
Specialist double-glazing company DGU Ltd of Exeter has generously offered to replace the broken glass panels free of charge, but the cost to affect the repairs is estimated to be in the region of £3000. Fundraising pages were set up on GoFundMe, PayPal and Facebook, and the £3000 target has already been reached.
Avon and Somerset Police have issued the following appeal for information regarding the alleged vandalism.
We’re appealing for witnesses after a World War One memorial was damaged in Wincanton.
A large poppy-shaped installation on Cemetery Lane, Cale Park was damaged last Friday (19th October).
The memorial’s bespoke glass front was cracked sometime between 1.30pm and 2pm.
As part of our inquiry we’re keen to speak to three men aged in their late teens or early 20s who were seen acting suspiciously in the area at the time of the incident.
Two of the men were wearing grey jogging bottoms while the other wore blue jeans along with a black fleece.
Anyone with information is asked to call 101 and provide the call handler with the reference 5218234119.
- Avon and Somerset Police
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