Albany man charged after SES volunteers return from rescue to find vehicles damaged

A 20-year-old Albany man will face court on four damage charges after he allegedly smashed the windscreen of an Albany State Emergency Services vehicle while the volunteers were rescuing a rock climber near The Gap. Albany SES members were part of the successful rescue of a Perth man, who fell 7m down a cliff face near the Cave Point lighthouse last month. The SES vertical rescue team was able to set up a two-rope system to get the 25-year-old rock climber to safety. However, the volunteers returned to their base on Sanford Road to find their incident control vehicle damaged along with two private cars. A Caterpillar excavator, which was being used for nearby roadworks, also had a window smashed. Police spoke to witnesses and obtained CCTV footage of the alleged offender before he was arrested and charged on Friday. The man will be summoned to appear in Albany Magistrate’s Court. Albany police officer-in-charge Sen. Sgt Grant Pollard described the alleged vandalism as a senseless act. “Our SES volunteers do an exceptional job,” Sen. Sgt Pollard said. “Their equipment is hard to come by and they don’t expect, while they are out serving the community, to have somebody damage their equipment.” After the cliff-face rescue last month, Albany SES posted a message on its Facebook page. “While our crews were volunteering their time and risking their safety, a member of the public vandalised DFES and personal property,” they said. “It is absolutely disappointing to return from a rescue situation only to see the damage that was caused by the responsible party.”