DEMOPOLIS &8212; One person has been arrested and charged with criminal mischief in connection with vandalism of the water tower on U.S. Highway 80 in Demopolis last week.

Christopher Overstreet, 22, was arrested on Monday by Demopolis Police Department.

Byron Cook, Water Department manager, said he sees no connection between this incident of vandalism and the one that happened last year. As for repairing the tower, Cook said, &8220;I&8217;ve got people lined up to take care of the problem.&8221;

Although he was not sure of a total cost for the project, Cook said the cost to repair the water tower would not be passed on to consumers. He said most of the damages will be covered under insurance, and also he hopes to seek damages from the parties responsible.

When the vandalism occurred, which police estimate was sometime over the weekend of Dec. 29-30, a portion of the barbed wire security fence was down. According to Cook, the fence was down while the department made repairs on a faulty pump inside the building located near the tower. Now, however, Cook said the fence will be reerected as soon as work is complete.

But this is not the only security measure Cook plans for the tower. After the last incident of vandalism, a ladder guard with a lock was put on the tower. Cook said this equipment will be replaced by raising the ladder height significantly.

Another planned precaution is to bring more light to the area, which Cook hopes will hold off more vandals. He also encourages citizens to be aware of suspicious activity.