VANDALS are "dicing with death" by toppling lampposts over in York streets.

The warning came after five posts were knocked down in Mischief Night trouble.

As reported in later editions of yesterday's Evening Press, four lights were damaged in the Woodthorpe area.

A City of York Council spokeswoman warned that not only were the culprits diverting resources away from other important repair work, they were risking their lives and electrocution in the process.

The warning came as a councillor raised safety concerns about delays in fixing four street lights on a road near York University.

Green member Coun Andy D'Agorne said the busy University Road/Garrow Hill stretch, which he says is currently not adequately lit, was frequently used by cyclists and pedestrians.

But York council today said this repair work was delayed after resources were focused on cleaning up after the vandal attacks.

A spokeswoman said: "We had a large amount of vandalism to streetlamps on Thursday night. People responsible for this are literally risking their lives. They pull these columns over and left doors open. There were cables hanging out."

The spokeswoman added: "If anybody had touched the live wires it would give them a fatal shock. These people are dicing with death and we would urge them not to do this."

Updated: 09:36 Saturday, November 06, 2004