Norton police car memorial damage 'into tens of thousands'

The damage done by police car that crashed into a war memorial could run into the tens of thousands of pounds, the parish council chairman has said.

The marked BMW was on an emergency call when it crashed with a car in Ixworth Road in Norton, Suffolk, at about 13:10 BST on Friday.

No-one was seriously injured, but chairman Andy Burt said the damage done to the memorial was "not pretty".

Police have begun an investigation into the cause of the crash.

The parish council spent about £2,000 last year restoring the memorial in preparation for the 100th anniversary of the end of World War One.

Mr Burt, who owns a nearby garage, said that was for minor works, including re-cutting the lettering, and they were now searching for specialist stone masons.

"Now it's not got a police car sat on top of it I can see the extent of the damage - it's not pretty," he said.

He said the 6ft (1.8m) tall stone top of the memorial had been moved 1ft (30cm) from where it should be and a ring of pillars have been "flattened".

"It's definitely going to be thousands [to repair]," said Mr Burt. "I'd imagine tens of thousands. "It's going to take a skilled craftsman, it's made of solid stone and it's moved."

The previous renovation had been done ahead of the 100th anniversary of World War One in November, but Mr Burt said those in the village were "understanding if it's not prepared".

The chairman added that insurers will decide how the repair works will be paid for.