Vandals in Demolition Derby at White Marsh Landfill

Vandals took bulldozers and other pieces of heavy equipment for joyrides after breaking into the Eastern Sanitary Landfill late Friday caused hundreds of thousands of dollars of damage, police said. One bulldozer had been rolled onto its side with the engine still running when workers found it.

According to police reports, employees arrived at the landfill, located at 6259 Days Cove Rd., in White Marsh, about 6:30 a.m., on Saturday and discovered four pieces of equipment--two bulldozers and two compactors--had been driven and damaged.  All four pieces  were located at the main dumpsite on the top of a hill toward the back of the property.

“These are not easy pieces of equipment to start,” county Public Works spokesman David Fidler said. “Whoever these joyriders were apparently knew how to operate these machines.”

Two compactors that were damaged were new pieces of equipment costing about $500,000 each. One compactor had a broken tool cylinder and a dented hydraulic cover. The second compactor sustained a punctured right wheel, dented tailgate and bent handrail. In addition, the fire suppression system was also deployed on the engine.

Fidler said it is still unclear how much damage was done to the equipment, although police cited early estimates of at least $300,000. The total value of the equipment is more than $1.5 million.

According to police reports, one bulldozer was rolled over on its side with two shattered windows and the engine running. The other bulldozer had a dented blade and the left track was derailed.

 “Those who work at the landfill are very upset about this, because these pieces of equipment are out of commission right now and will greatly impact how they do their job,” Fidler said.

“The compactors were just recently purchased and cost $500,000 each. The bulldozers were worth between $200,000 and $300,000. We’re still assessing whether this equipment can be saved.”