FEDERALSBURG, MD. - A splash pad in Federalsburg has reopened, with a new security system, after incidents of vandalism forced it to close.
Town officials say the splash pad has experienced four instances of vandalism since it opened on June 8th. The most recent incident caused the splash pad to close for just under a month.
Town manager Kristy Marshall says this is the most vandalism the splash pad has seen since it's opening twelve years ago.
"Someone was picking -- digging and picking the coating off of the top which was causing pieces and chips to come off and get stuck in the drain and the mechanism of the pump," Marshall said.
The old flooring has since been removed. Marshall says the town has replaced the flooring with a sturdier substitute that they hope will be harder to remove.
Marshall also says she hopes the installation of a new security camera will hopefully deter future issues. The camera surveys both the splash pad and it's surrounding area.
The town manager says she's sad that a security camera even needed to be installed.
"We take good pride in our parks and it's very disheartening when things are torn up," Marshall said. "It's upset a lot of people to not be able to use the splashpad. I mean, we're here until August and it's only been open a couple weeks."
Marshall says that, since the splash pad reopened, families have been coming to splash around and beat the heat.
One of these families was there when WBOC visited this morning. Nivea Fletcher, her mom, and her brother were all excited to come out and play.
"I like it," Nivea said. "You can run through it with your eyes closed!"
With the new security, the town hopes that families like Nivea's will be able to keep splashing all summer long.
However, if future instances do occur, town leaders say they are prepared to involve the Federalsburg police.
