VANDALS have trashed a war memorial just weeks after villagers stood silent together to honour fallen heroes.

Flowers, wreaths and plants laid for Remembrance Sunday were uprooted and thrown across the street at Church Street, Hilperton, on Friday night.

A bouquet of flowers laid by a relative of one of the war dead remembered on the memorial even had the flower heads and petals ripped off.

Angry residents have labelled the attack as 'mindless vandalism' and rallied together to clean up the mess.

Chris Metcalfe, of Church Street, first found the wreckage on Saturday morning and alerted police.

He said: "I was walking to the shop after watching England win the rugby when I saw the wreckage. I couldn't just walk past without doing something so I tidied it up a little bit.

"It just grated on me that some idiot could do this, we should always show respect to people who died in conflict especially now as many soldiers are out in Iraq.

"It's just mindless vandalism. Nearly everyone has a relative who fought or died in the wars. I had uncles and grandads who died in the Navy who don't even have a grave.

"I think it's disgraceful that this comes just two weeks after the village joined together at Remembrance Day."

Councillors, scout and guide groups and school children had laid reeves at the village's war memorial on Remembrance Sunday on November 9.

Hilperton Parish Council is responsible for maintaining the war memorial and children give up their time to water the plants.

Although flowers and wreaths were strewn across the street the masonry on the 80-year-old memorial was not damaged in the attack.

Ron Sawyer, of Church Street, has spent time in the past with his wife Sheila maintaining the plants and was shocked by what he saw.

He said: "It's an act of wanton vandalism. Luckily they didn't break anything but pulled the plants up and trashed the wreaths."

In the last two weeks vandals have thrown bricks at noticeboards opposite the war memorial and at St Mary's Church.

The war memorial at St Michaels and All Saints Church lists villagers who died in wars during the past century.

It is believed the attack happened overnight on Friday, November 22.

Anyone with information should contact the police on (01225) 763101.