Archived Story
Ironton pump station vandalized
Published 9:53am Wednesday, January 30, 2013Police are on the lookout for vandals who defaced one of the city’s pump stations over the weekend.
Floodwall Superintendent Mike Pemberton and another city employee discovered pump station No. 5, under the Second Street overpass, was tagged with graffiti, most of which was profane, over the weekend.
“We found a little last week, but not as severe as what we found over the weekend,” Pemberton said.
The road that leads to the pump station has a locking gate, which Pemberton said was locked over the weekend, but is accessible to foot traffic.
The façade of the brick structure was covered with crude drawings of swords dripping with blood, various profanities and a hanged man with the words “Killen The Pigs.”
Acting Ironton Police Chief Chris Bowman said some of the profanities seemed to target law enforcement.
“We are the object, sometimes, they like to focus on,” Bowman said.
Bowman also said there were some names written in spray paint and that police would investigate those people as possible suspects.
More than just an inconvenience, Pemberton said the graffiti will cost the city unnecessary expenses to remove.
“We don’t have the manpower to go around and cover graffiti,” Pemberton said. “… It takes a lot of doing to pressure wash and repaint that whole building. We don’t need to be doing stuff like that”
Pemberton runs the city’s street, sanitation and flood control departments, and with limited staff, can’t afford to have to patrol the area for vandals.
“It’s just a shame that whoever did it, they don’t have anymore respect for people’s property,” he said.
Bowman said anyone with information about the vandalism is encouraged to contact the police department at (740) 532-2345.
Somebody needs a good swift kick in the ars.
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Good comment, swampcreature, but sometimes vandalism and other criminal acts go beyond being poor. They speak to the person’s integrity, to their values, respect for others and even respect for their own community. My family lived through the depression and many hardtimes but they didn’t behave like these insignificant, eprehensible slime.
Vandalism shows the world that Ironton has bottom feeders with extremely low intellect living within. Being from the ‘swamp’, you may well know that bottom feeders are creatures that do not strive for betterment of their lives, but clearly walk a path of destruction, usually their own, sucking up the misery of others while trying to draw attention to themselves by some volatile or chaotic act.
If they only knew what the rest of us think of them I don’t believe they would be too keen on continuing their behavior.
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There is nothing shocking about tagged buildings in blighted areas. Sorry to inform you, but Ironton has turned into a ghetto. It’s one big pocket of poverty.
2010 Census (Ironton compared to State of Ohio)
Median value of owner-occupied housing units, 2007-2011 $84,900 $135,600
Persons living below poverty level, 2007-2011, percent 21.0 % 14.8%
Median household income,2007-2011 $31,462 $48,071
Ironton is old when compared to the rest of Ohio. Because of the poor economy in the Tri-State, many young adults moved away to find suitable employment.
Persons 65 years and over, percent, 2010 19.2% 14.1%
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As poverty increases,the American dream of owning a home gets replaced with renting. This trend produces a loss in neighborhood pride and general property upkeep.
Homeownership rate, 2007-2011
57.1% 68.7%
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