A village Christmas tree that was believed to have been hacked by vandals was sliced in half due to “high winds” and was “not a malicious act”, police say.
The prize tree in Doddington was assessed by officers last night (November 29) after it was reported as being vandalised with a £100 reward up for grabs to catch the culprits.
But after a closer look at the break in the tree, and its height, Cambridgeshire Police say that “storm damage is the most logical conclusion”.
A statement read: “In response to community concerns we have visited Doddington this evening and met with a member of the Christmas lights committee.
“Having looked at the break in the tree I am as satisfied as I can be that this has been caused by the high winds overnight and not a malicious act.
“The same winds that caused power issues for the village at Primrose Hill today.
“We have come to this conclusion by assessing the height of the tree, the method of fixing and the strong winds all combined.
“Of course if anyone has information to suggest otherwise please let us know (ref 35/48588/18).
“However, storm damage is the most logical conclusion based on what I have seen this evening.”
However, some residents were still not convinced that Mother Nature was to blame for tainting their Christmas spirit.
One commented on social media: “If it was wind it would have striped more bark of as it fell, the police should have had an independent professional to look at it.”
Chairman of Doddington Christmas Lights Committee, David Curtis, had been initially alerted to the incident yesterday morning, and by 3pm half the tree was back up with the lights on.
Mr Cutis’ daughter told this newspaper that a child one his way to school cried this morning after he thought “Christmas was over”.
The tree is the biggest the town has had to date and every year a new one is donated by a local family.
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