It took three years of debates and constantly changing installation timetables for State College officials to put the security cameras up -- but only a few seconds to bring one of them crashing to the ground.

The camera, located at the corner of Hiester Street and Beaver Avenue, and the pole that held it were totally destroyed in a hit and run accident at 11:57 p.m. Saturday. Workers removed the pole and the camera's remnants soon after the incident.

Witnesses described the vehicle as a white RV with an overhead-sleeping compartment and damage to the left driver's side of the vehicle, the State College Police Department said.

The Hiester Street surveillance camera was one of three recently installed in the area known as Beaver Canyon.

Penn State student Jackie Graham (senior-psychology) was on the fifth floor of The Diplomat apartment building, 329 E. Beaver Ave., when she heard the crash.

"I looked down from the balcony and saw that the lamppost was knocked over," Graham said. "Everyone was laughing and pointing it out to others in the apartment."

Dean Coupland (senior-economics) said he did not see the accident occur, but saw people on the street looking around after it happened.

"I really didn't see much," Coupland said.

The cost of installing the three cameras was about $7,589 each. The future of the destroyed camera was unclear yesterday.

State College Borough Council President Richard McCarl said he is not happy about the damage, but accidents do happen.

"We are committed to putting these in. My guess is that we have insurance [on the cameras]," McCarl said.

He also said that if the cost of re-installation is less than $10,000, then the borough manager can approve it. However, he expects council to discuss any decision first.

Council voted last May to install the cameras despite overwhelming student opposition. The three cameras are -- or were -- located on the corners of McAllister Street, Locust Lane and Hiester Street along Beaver Avenue.

Council member Tom Daubert said that although he did not know the specifics of the accident, people should not destroy them.

"Even though I was against the installation of the cameras, that doesn't mean they should be destroyed," Daubert said. "Once the decision is made, people need to deal with what the law is."

State College police are asking anyone with information about the accident, especially a license plate number, to contact them at 234-7150.