Vandals have broken into the St John Ambulance Manjimup sub centre and caused thousands of dollars worth of damage.

The break-in occurred between 6am and 9am last Wednesday and very nearly put the lives of the community at risk.

The vandals disconnected charge leads for all three ambulances and would have left the centre unable to respond to call-outs had St John personnel not reconnected them in time.

Manjimup community paramedic Gary Willcox condemned the reckless actions of those involved.

‘‘Why would you break into an ambulance station; what sort of person does that?’’ Mr Willcox said.

‘‘They disconnected the charges from all three ambulances which could have resulted in us not being able to provide an effective service to the community, but fortunately it was discovered in time.

‘‘There doesn’t appear to be anything of significant value taken... it’s all a bit bizarre.’’

The vandals broke into the sub centre through the back door and wrecked havoc inside, smashing doors and destroying property.

The damage bill is expected to total $2000, but security upgrades will climb to in excess of $5000.

Mr Willcox said it was extremely disappointing for St John Ambulance and the community.

‘‘Although we are insured, we still have to do a lot of fundraising to pay for the insurance and the security upgrades such as CCTV cameras, so it will be very costly,’’ he said.

Manjimup police officer Sgt. Dave White said police were continuingwith their enquiries.

‘‘It shows the low mental capacity of some people,’’ Sgt. White said.

‘‘They are unable to think ahead and consider the danger to the community.’’