Town’s christmas light show almost cancelled by break-in

THE annual Christmas lights display in Brynmawr was almost cancelled this year, after thieves broke in to the storage container where the decorations were kept.

The festive display hosted by Brynmawr Town Partnership has been put on by volunteers in the town for the past 20 years, with the ceremonial switching on of the lights becoming a treasured event for locals.

In the past, guest stars such as Welsh rugby legend Dan Lydiate, and Coronation Street actress Samia Ghadie have all switched on the lights in front of hundreds of people from across the borough.

Though the plans for this years display on November 28 almost suffered a set back when the storage unit containing the decorations was broken in to.

The incident marks the second year in a row where decorations have been stolen from the group, after a decorative Santa was taken last year amid the Christmas celebrations.

It follows a trend of thieving and vandalism, that seems to have become a growing problem across the borough of Blaenau Gwent this year.

Despite the near miss, Cllr Wayne Hodgins and other members of the group assured people in the town that the lights will be put up as normal this year, with plans to avoid further incidents in the future being put in place.

He said: “We’ve reported the issue to the police, and we will definitely look to relocate the place where the decorations are kept from now on. Whoever decided to mess with the decorations needs to realise they belong to the people of the community, so ultimately they are the ones who will suffer.

“The lights will go up as normal this year and that’s 100% certain. It is very important as everyone in Brynmawr likes to celebrate it at Christmas time.”