A popular aquarium at the Here We Are Centre in Cairndow will be locked up outside office hours after it was destroyed by vandals.
The community enterprise company’s centre, situated at the head of Loch Fyne beside Loch Fyne Oysters and The Tree Shop, tells the story of the community and its people.
With its starfish, crabs and other creatures, the aquarium gives visitors an idea of what goes on underneath the loch.
It is situated in a shed at the centre and cared for by local man Dom Adams, who as a previous employee of Loch Fyne Oysters, has the required expertise.
The Here We Are team used to leave the shed unlocked when they finished work at 3pm. This allowed visitors to enjoy the spectacle outside of the office hours, when there were still many tourists about.
But now the tank is being replaced and in future the shed will be locked when the centre closes.
It is hoped that the new tank will be filled with creatures and be up and running by Easter.
In the Here We Are annual report, project worker Dot Chalmers wrote: “We were shocked and disappointed to find that our aquarium had been vandalised overnight and all the water had drained out of it.
“Luckily Dom Adams managed to get the sea creatures back into the loch before they died.
“We are now in the process of getting another tank installed, John MacDonald has been working hard trying to make it fit.
“It has made us aware of how many people enjoy the aquarium as lots of people have come into Here We Are asking what has happened to it.”
Speaking to The Advertiser, Dot said the incident took place in August last year and was reported to police.
She said: “We came in one morning and all of the water was out of it. The glass had been hit with something hard. There was a huge crack in it.
“We close at 3pm and usually there are still lots of people about, so we would leave the shed open. Now we are going to have to start locking it at night.”
The team were able to claim the insurance to buy a replacement tank, which has been fitted and Dom will be filling it with creatures from the loch soon.
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