August
2006
Copper
Thieves Gambling with Their Lives
With the
price of salvage copper soaring, electrical wire has become what some thieves
perceive as easy pickings. But if they pick the wrong wire, it could cost
them their life.
“We’ve
had several recent instances of wire theft from new subdivisions,” says
Hosie Stephen, Walton EMC line crew supervisor. “The thieves come in
after dark to new developments where there are no homes and steal our underground
cable.”
 |
| Like any other commodity, the price of copper fluctuates. The market
for scrap copper is high, but power lines are not the place to look for
scrap copper. |
“It
puts our people at risk,” continues Stephen. In one recent situation,
a wire was cut in half but not removed. The Walton EMC lineman happened to
spot it before energizing the line.
If a copper
thief chooses to steal a wire that’s already energized, the results
could be deadly. “Anyone who cuts into an energized power line will
probably be electrocuted,” says Loss Control Director Larry Thompson.“The
only people working on our transformers or other equipment in new subdivisions
should be Walton EMC crews or those of our contractor, Pike Electric,” continues
Stephen.
Walton
EMC vehicles are white and display the company logo in green. Pike vehicles
are yellow and display their logo in black and blue.
Utility
cable theft is not a victimless crime. Ratepayers end up
footing the bill for replacing and repairing the damage left by a wire thief,
which usually totals in the hundreds of dollars. Extreme cases could run
into thousands.
Many times
the surprise is on the thief when the wire they steal
isn’t copper. “They’ve
put out a lot of effort and risked their life for just a piece of aluminum,” says
Stephen.Walton EMC
encourages developers to gate subdivisions under construction
and asks citizens to be alert for strange activities.
“If
you see anyone else around our facilities or suspiciously eyeing them, please
call local law enforcement,” says Thompson. “Even the subdivision
developer wouldn’t be poking around our equipment.”
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