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Vandals set fire at towerBy Times staff writer© St. Petersburg Times published November 26, 2002 HERNANDO BEACH -- Somebody set the 40-foot observation tower on fire over the weekend, authorities said. Spring Hill firefighters received a call that the tower was ablaze, although the fire was out by the time they arrived, authorities said. Deputies saw a charred hole in the wood on the second level and palm fronds nearby, which could have been used as kindling. The fire also burned several planks on the first level, said deputies, who think the fire started late Saturday or early Sunday. On Sunday, the observation tower in Hernando Beach Park on Shoal Line Boulevard was closed to those wanting to see a panoramic view of the surrounding marsh and Gulf of Mexico. Roy Link, supervisor of the county's parks and waterways, said the tower reopened at 1 p.m. Monday. Repairs, including 125 feet of new wood decking, cost taxpayers about $335. "We wish vandals would find something more constructive to do with their lives," he said. "We don't have the time or staff to keep coming back and repairing stuff. It gets old." State investigators are looking into the fire, which has been classified as an arson.
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