Visitors to the playground behind the Bernal Heights Library this past weekend were greeted by yellow caution tape wrapped around one of the park’s main play structures.
An ulcer-like hole now mars two upper sections of the park’s beloved tunnel slide, rendering it unusable. Pretty depressing.
Anyone see this happen? If you have pertinent information, please call the Ingleside Police Station at 404-4000.
If Dante’s Inferno offers any clue to the vandals’ fate, they will be dispatched to the outer ring of the seventh circle of hell, where they will be immersed in the boiling blood of the fiery River Phlegethon.
UPDATE 2/25/13 4 pm: Captain Tim Falvey of the Ingleside Police Station says any witnesses should call the Arson Task Force, which is investigating, at 920-2944. In the meantime, police patrols are being increased in the area, and beat officers are checking to see if any cameras along Cortland might have captured anything useful.
PHOTOS: First and last, via Neighbor Andy. Middle by Neighbor JoAnn
Bernalwood 
that is sad…my daughter spent many trips to that park playing on that slide. i for one would love to contribute to a fund to better light that park at night and install cameras on the library
Everyone use park scan to fix asap
Done!
Time to contact your Burning Man friends, who know all about how to fix fiberglass and plastics. It shouldn’t be too difficult to fix the slide and make it good as new.
That’s bargaining unit work. Unless your Burning Man friends are Park and Rec employees they will not be permitted to work on City property.
This is the travesty of the modern world. Vandalise something without consequence, but get caught fixing it, and you risk being sued and criminal charges. Sort of backwards if you ask me.
Are you going to accept liability if someone gets hurt on the “fixed” equipment, or ten years down the road we figure out that the material used is terribly carcinogenic.
Bechtel didn’t accept responsibility for designing the part of the Nimitz Freeway that collapsed in 1989. They also didn’t accept responsibility for the cables that snapped on the Bay Bridge. Facebook doesn’t accept responsibility for the stalking that occurs against people who post too much personal info. Apple doesn’t accept responsibility for the low wages and poor working conditions in China that occur because people buy their iProducts.
I say just FIX the damned thing. Do it under cover of night. Do it whenever. I specifically mentioned Burning Man because the people who built art projects in plastic, wood, and metal are for the most part highly skilled artisans who know what they’re doing.
While I’ve never heard of any cables snapping on the Bay Bridge before this, I agree with davidkaye. The kids need the slide back.
Guh. This is why we can’t have nice things, people.
This is nothing new. When I was in grade school somebody destroyed a slide at our school. This was no easy feat because in those days playground equipment was made of steel pipe and the slide surface was thick sheetmetal. Vandalism has always gone on. Just get past it and fix it up.
This is like the third time I’ve seen this done and my kids are now 8 and 10. I know the tube slide is more fun, but maybe it should just be replaced with an open one?
Make it out of metal instead of plastic.
What is Park Scan? If there is going to be fund raiser to get it fixed, let me know.
Looks like it was caused by a fire?
Such things did not happen when I was a child. Mainly, it is true, because playground equipment was made from heavy gauge steel.
The seventh circle of Hell? Isn’t that Jr High School?
People – please use Park Scan – we can fix this asap as long as you 911 it! Here is the link:
http://www.parkscan.org
please tell me the name of the park, am on a crazy work schedule so don’t have time to walk over to the park, but noticed there are 2 parks mentioned in Bernal on the Park Scan web site…..thx
Looks like the Library playground. It’s been melted before by idiots putting fireworks down the slide.
Registered for parkscan and sent an observation. The last three observations entered on the parkscan site were re: this slide. Everyone needs to send a message, my guess is that Rec & Park has spare tube sections and could fix this ASAP if enough of us make noise about it.
http://www.parkscan.org/
thanks for the tip on ParkScan! btw the park in question is “Bernal Heights Rec. Center and Playground” in their system.
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Looks like they are finally fixing the slide!! Hooray!
Picture: https://www.circlesavvy.com/posts/829