Rural area sees rash of mailbox vandalism; 60 boxes damaged over the weekend; sheriff's office says it doesn't have any suspects

A mailbox on the side of Maple Road is left in pieces after being damaged over the weekend. The owner said he got home, heard a truck drive away and the dogs barking but did not think anything of it. He then noticed Monday on his way into Fort Scott that his mailbox, along with several others, was damaged. (Michael Pommier/Tribune)

Many rural Fort Scott residents are left dealing with the damage after their mailboxes were vandalized over the weekend.

According to Fort Scott Post Office Postmaster Robert Vacca, about 60 mailboxes in rural Fort Scott were damaged this weekend. He said the residents have been calling the post office and the rural mail carriers have been reporting the varying damage since Monday morning.

"We were getting calls from pretty much the entire rural area around Fort Scott with some damage," Vacca said. "Some of them were just bent up, some of them were knocked down, some were completely gone."

According to Bourbon County Sheriff's Deputy Bob Jackson damage done to several mailboxes on 240th Street, Jayhawk Road, Indian Road, 180th Street and Fern Road. He added that the Sheriff's Office currently does not have any suspects in relation to the incidents.

As a general rule, Vacca said, post office employees refer customers to local law enforcement to file a report if mailboxes are damaged. He added that, contrary to popular belief, damage to a mailbox is not a federal offense, rather it is considered vandalism, much like graffiti. He said the issue becomes more severe when the contents of the mailbox are stolen.

"It doesn't increase the severity of it any because they vandalized a mailbox," he said. "The only crime that comes in is when they steal the mail, then it changes things," Vacca said.

With the locations of the reports, Vacca said there does not appear to be any kind of pattern linking the incidents. However, he said some of the reports pertained to mailboxes that have been damaged in the past.

"There doesn't seem to be any common thread or rhyme or reason as far as certain people who had their mailbox knocked down versus others," he said.

One of those boxes belonged to Peggy Hall, who lives on Indian Road. Since Friday, Hall has replaced her mailbox at least twice. It was damaged Friday, she replaced it only to have it destroyed on Saturday. She replaced it again and it was hit so hard on Sunday, the post was broken off of its concrete base.

Hall said she spent $90 to have the post set in concrete this past summer and has had to replace her mailbox five times since moving into her house in July 2008. She added her mailbox has been damaged "numerous times," however, she has been able to fix the damage with a hammer.

"I've got a new one sitting there ready to put up, but I haven't put it up yet because I don't have a post now to put it on," she said.

Vacca said damage to mailboxes is somewhat expected because motorists frequently run off the road and strike them, or back into one as they are exiting their driveway. But he said it's unusual to see so many incidents in such a short period of time.

"It's kind of common to have mailboxes damaged from time to time, but nothing near this degree," he said. "This is pretty severe."

The post office does provide some assistance to residents who have had their mailboxes damaged.

Residents are urged to get their mailboxes replaced as quickly as possible and the post office will make arrangements for residents to get their mail in the meantime.

Not much can be done to prevent damage to mailboxes. Moving the boxes is discussed with resident and the post office, however, it is not always possible.

Vacca said the way rural mail routes are set up, mailboxes cannot be moved very far.

"The boxes are set in such a way ... as our line of travel dictates where the boxes go," he said. "The boxes are placed strategically based on the line of travel for the routes."

One thing that Vacca tells residents who suffer from consistent damage is to evaluate the style of mailbox they have and the structure of the post, but even that may not be enough to keep it from being knocked over.

"There are only so many different kinds of mailboxes for customers to put up, and if (vandals) want to knock it down bad enough they're probably going to get it," he said.

Anyone with information regarding the vandalism is encouraged to contact the Bourbon County Sheriff's Office at (620) 223-1440. Area residents are also encouraged to report any suspicious vehicles in their area at night.