The Old Cannery Furniture Warehouse is prepping the nearby bridge for the annual lighting ceremony, but some repeat vandalism is slowing the progress.

On Nov. 2 Chris Mason, the maintenance manager at the furniture store, discovered many of the lights he installed on the bridge were broken and some of the strings torn down.

He repaired the damage only to find vandalism occurred overnight when he arrived on Nov. 3.

Vandalism at this location is an annual occurrence, he said, but usually to a lesser extent.

“Nothing to this magnitude, ever,” he said.

Roadwork signs were thrown into the river and there was some blood on the bridge, possibly from when a vandal was cut by a light bulb. On Valley Avenue some mailboxes were damaged, but vandalism wasn’t the culprit. A police pursuit involving Sumner and Puyallup police headed to Valley Avenue, where the driver of the pursued vehicle struck the mailboxes.

Sumner Police Department Deputy Chief Brad Moericke said vandalism has occurred at the bridge for the past four years approximately and without arrests.

The Old Cannery Furniture Warehouse’s annual bridge lighting is scheduled for Nov. 26.