It takes a real POS to destroy something that does not belong to them – PB/TK
Disabled students struggle to recover from vandalism that ruined equipment, clothes –
A Sacramento County school for disabled adults is recovering from a vandalism spree that left feces and wheelchairs in the swimming pool, as well as flame retardant all over clothes that serve as a lifeline for students.
The episode at Laurel Ruff Transition School occurred around 6:30 p.m. Feb. 22 during a weeklong break in classes. Sacramento County sheriff’s officials believe the suspects are between ages 9 and 13 and have spoken to witnesses who saw two boys on the roof and banging on doors some time before an alarm sounded.
The school serves 118 students, ages 18 to 22, in the 5300 block of Garfield Avenue, just north of Madison Avenue in northeast Sacramento County.
“In the pool area, they dumped equipment and towels and hair dryers and wheelchairs and anything that wasn’t bolted down into the pool,” said Julia Arreguin, principal of Laurel Ruff.
The pool also contained broken glass from multiple mirrors, a wood laundry chest, plastic pipe and a mechanical walker used for exercise. Perpetrators defecated in the pool and poured in shampoo, she said.
Perpetrators poured chemicals into the Jacuzzi and turned on the water, flooding the area, she said. They used fire extinguishers to spew flame retardant over items in the students’ clothes closet in a nearby portable building.
On Thursday, Laurel Ruff’s head custodian Sam Nath began moving the room’s wood furniture away from the side of the pool. It, too, had been tossed into the water, Nath said. In the bathrooms, three new sinks were ready for installation. All items had been retrieved from the pool, but it was still being cleaned.
