Major damage, safety risk after copper theft in Langley
Posted February 25, 2014 9:42 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
LANGLEY (NEWS1130) – The latest incident of copper theft in the Lower Mainland is being called “astonishing,” and a huge risk to public safety.
It happened earlier this month on Production Way in Langley; the thieves chopped down two power poles and ripped into three electrical transformers attached to them.
“They’re about two [or] three storeys high, those poles that you see all along those rural areas,” says Corporal Holly Marks. “This was in an industrial, sort of commercial area. Personally, I found it quite shocking that the cost of the damage was over $75,000.”
BC Hydro told the RCMP there was a very real chance someone could have been electrocuted.
“This had the potential of being quite dangerous and creating a hazard to the thieves as well as innocent members of the public who might have inadvertently come across these live wires,” says Marks.
Copper theft has been a major issue in the area for years.
Surrey is now spending millions to replace all copper wiring in streetlights to stop the problem.
