Metal thieves putting lives at risk

Date published: 19 February 2010

Desperate metal thieves are putting lives at risk by breaking in to electricity sub stations to steal copper earthing from high voltage switchgear.

In addition to the damage caused to the sub station thieves are also risking death and potentially the lives of emergency service personnel if there is an accident.

Recent thefts have occurred in Water Street in Hyde, Whitelands Road in Ashton and Underwood Road in Hattersley, and Police are appealing for any witnesses or people with information to come forward.

Sergeant Graham Fielding said: “We take this crime very seriously. There is a market for scrap metal and this has become a lucrative business for thieves at great cost to local residents in the loss of local power supply and potentially putting lives at risk.

“Criminals often seek to offload stolen property near to where offences have occurred, and we will be working with Trading Standards to ensure that metal merchants and scrap yards obtain accurate names and addresses of people selling copper should further enquiries be needed.

“As a Police force, we work closely with the British Metal Recycling Association (BMRA) to assist them in helping scrap metal dealers to comply with trading legislation and identify those traders who are unlicensed and trading illegally.”

Electricity North West owns the North West's regional electricity distribution network and supplies power to 2.3 million homes and businesses in Cumbria, Lancashire, Greater Manchester and parts of Derbyshire and Cheshire through its network of 13,127 km of overhead lines, 43,126km of underground cables and 38,332 transformers. The day-to-day running and maintenance of the system is contracted to United Utilities.

United Utilities Central Engineering Services Manager, Steve Cox said: “Anyone who breaks into a sub station is taking their life in their hands. Not only that, they are risking the lives of Police and power workers, and causing great inconvenience to local residents who lose their electricity as a result. We’re working closely with the local police to crack down on this crime.”

Last year United Utilities began a programme of marking substation equipment with SmartWater, a special forensic “dye” that glows under ultraviolet light. Metal marked with this water can be traced back to its original location and proven stolen, providing valuable evidence for Police and scrap metal dealers.

Anyone with any information about this or any similar type of crime should call Greater Manchester Police on 0161 872 5050 or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.