PLANTS have been stolen from an Exmouth-based surgery.

PLANTS have been stolen from an Exmouth-based surgery.

The incident at the Imperial Medical Practice comes just days after yobs uprooted flowers which lined the seafront.

Dorothy Shaw, a patient at the practice in Imperial Road, said she was upset at the plant theft.

“I’m dismayed and concerned about the systematic theft of plants from the troughs outside,” she said.

“The garden is tended entirely by volunteers. Flowers and shrubs are planted all year round for the pleasure and benefit of patients, some of whom are frail, seriously ill or disabled.

“The caring medical team is aware that a bright environment is helpful to the well-being of patients.

“I hope that the perpetrators of this unkind act will consider these points and will now allow patients and public to enjoy the garden.”

Sergeant Nick Southern urged anyone who has information about the crimes, which he branded as ‘disgusting’ , to contact the police.

He said: “Any theft is something we are concerned about. People have taken time to plant these things and someone has to pay for them at the end of the day.

“They are there for the community of Exmouth.”

Flowers, plants and small trees planted by StreetScene in beds opposite The Pavilion were uprooted and unceremoniously thrown onto the pavement earlier this month.

Exmouth in Bloom chairman and town councillor Pat Graham said: “It’s just mindless vandalism.

“It’s very disappointing. People work so hard, and spend the summer looking after the plants and for what?

“Just so in a matter of seconds they can be torn up again.”

The aftermath of the vandalism was caught on camera by Cutters Wharf resident Andy Buchan who said: “Whether there was some function that led to possible drunken rowdies I’m unsure, but there were also several broken bottles along the pavement as well, which is a shame… the seafront has been looking pretty good this year.”

Anyone with information about the crimes should call Devon and Cornwall police on 08452 777444.