Grieving families won't be charged to replace more than 80 memorial plaques ripped from graves by callous thieves.
Vandals tore about 84 brass plaques from headstones and other memorials at Quorn cemetery, about 300km north of Adelaide, leaving many resting places bare.
Flinders Ranges Council mayor Ken Anderson said a staff member was walking through the cemetery around 6am on Friday when they noticed the damage.
"It's just bloody terrible to have an understanding that some ... idiot scum are really going around doing something this devastating," Mr Anderson told AAP on Sunday.
It is expected the plaques were stolen to be sold as scrap metal.
Brass scrap is valued between $3.50 and $9.50 a kilogram, depending on the cleanliness and grade.
Mr Anderson said he spent Saturday at the cemetery meeting families who had rushed there to see if the resting places for their loved-ones were affected.
He welcomed news the South Australian government would partner with the council to replace the stolen items.
Many families had been traumatised by the crime and faced the added stress of having to remember what had been inscribed on the plaques, Mr Anderson said.
Premier Peter Malinauskas said the state government would work with the local authority to ensure families didn't have to deal with the financial burden of the "disgraceful act".
"No family grieving a loved one should be forced to relive that pain because of the vile actions of criminals," he said on Sunday.
The cost to replace the plaques and refurbish the vandalised headstones is expected to exceed $40,000.
Quorn is a small town in the Flinders Ranges region, about 40km northeast of Port Augusta.
South Australia Police are investigating the incident and have urged anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers.
