Heartless yobs try to burn down four-year-old's den

A mother has hit out at arsonists who tried to torch her young son’s den that has become a popular destination for other children in the area.
Four-year-old Rory Kibler, pictured with mum, Sarah, built his retreat in the woods at Allerton Bywater in recent months to help beat lockdown boredom.Four-year-old Rory Kibler, pictured with mum, Sarah, built his retreat in the woods at Allerton Bywater in recent months to help beat lockdown boredom.
Four-year-old Rory Kibler, pictured with mum, Sarah, built his retreat in the woods at Allerton Bywater in recent months to help beat lockdown boredom.

Four-year-old Rory Kibler built his retreat in the woods at Allerton Bywater in recent months to help beat lockdown boredom.

The den, largely made up of fallen branches, is situated just off the public footpath that begins on Park Lane, near the village’s Tesco store.

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And it proved such a hit that other children then built their own in the wooded area, turning it into a tiny village which was given the ironic name Covid Court, in reference to the virus.

Trashed: Yobs tried to set fre to Rorys denTrashed: Yobs tried to set fre to Rorys den
Trashed: Yobs tried to set fre to Rorys den

Many had left letters of thank you to Rory for starting the project. But Rory, who had attended the village’s ABC Nursery and is expected to start at school in September, was left devastated when yobs targeted his den.

His mother Sarah said: “It was completely ruined.

“It would appear whoever has done it tried to set it on fire, and I’ guessing, as the wood was wet, it luckily didn’t take off, so they’ve completely trashed it instead.

“They’ve ripped all the letters up too that was in the box, over 40 of them, including thank you cards. The decorations added by people were also smashed and ruined. It’s such a shame.”

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Mrs Kibler said they could not bring themselves to tell Rory the truth behind the attack.

“We made an elaborate story about a witch’s spell that went wrong, he’d be heartbroken if he thought there were such cruel people in the world.

“We’ve had so many messages from people offering to help build it up again, which has been so kind.

“Everyone has really felt disappointed and upset by it, as we have.

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“It’s such a shame when it brought so much for the village. At least the others are still there for people to enjoy though.

“I’m still getting messages daily for directions on how to get there. I’m really pleased people can still enjoy it.

“I reckon there’s about 16 dens in total now, maybe more as we’ve not been down this week with the weather being bad. “

Rory, who lives in Allerton Bywater, had even set up a Just Giving page to help raise money for the NHS which has so far raised £775.

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