"The rumours and speculation which fingers Wellington as the ice capital of the central west are off the mark," Senior Sergeant Madgwick said.

"Offences here are below per capita of the bigger cities and towns but that has no effect on our determination to be vigilant and to investigate.

"It doesn't mean we aren't ramping up our already tough stance and investigations into the problem. We are aware of the damage which this is doing to the community and we are working hard to arrest and charge them.

"Recently we raided homes and arrested people who had quantities of ice and we are targeting others who distribute the drug to the community."

The senior sergeant said people needed to keep giving them information on drug hot spots so they could pounce on those doing harm to the community.

A national media report in 2014 said "locals describe Wellington as Little Antarctica" because of how much ice, or crystal methamphetamine, was available.

The story went on to say the ABC had been told in some streets, ice dealers were operating in every third house.

While this was denied by most locals, they were frustrated by what they described as "the out of control behaviour" of many who were addicted to the drug.

They say they know where the drug suppliers are housed but were helpless to do anything.

"We understand there has to be rock-solid evidence to get these people but we want more police event detectives in town," a local said in the report.

One resident, who like many did not want to be named because they feared reprisal and whose home has been broken into three times, allegedly by drug addicts on ice, told the report: "We are sick and tired of the break-ins by criminals who have to steal to feed their habit. They have stolen things of personal value and not of any real value to anyone else and probably sold it for a hit of ice".

"Before long people will begin taking things into their own hands with these ice addicts because we don't know what to do", it said.

A former ice addict who lived at Wellington, Josh Toomey, told the report: "It's heartbreaking, you know, I go home and I see strong women, I see strong men who've been robbed of life, who've been robbed of potentially living a healthy life because of this dirty drug ice".

"You'd be surprised how easy it is to get. There could be four or five dealers who live five, 10 minutes apart from each other.'' he said talking about his life in Wellington from a rehabilitation centre.

"Unfortunately, some people don't make it here and that's what this drug does. It kills."