Scrap thefts create headaches in Erie region

Source: Erie Times-News, Pa.迷你倉Oct. 28--It pays to step carefully around parts of Erie these days.Metal grates and covers have disappeared from storm sewer systems throughout the city in recent months, leading police to warn pedestrians of the potential hazards.A few have also vanished from the Erie Cemetery, forcing overseers to cover the holes with plywood and mark them with cones to protect cemetery visitors."They're costly, and we can't leave them open for fear that someone might step in an open drain," said Clarke Kuebler, the cemetery's general manager.The theft of metal from homes, businesses, parks, cemeteries and other facilities has been an ongoing problem in the Erie region. But some recent thefts are creating dangerous situations for those stealing things or affected by the thefts, and they are proving costly for those who have to repair or replace what was stolen.Millcreek Township police are investigating a recent incident during which someone cut a copper Freon line at a township business, forcing the evacuation of the business and costing the business a significant amount of money in lost product, an investigator said.The city of Erie is spending $200 to $300 to replace each of nearly 50 catch basin covers and other metal covers stolen from storm drain systems this year. Police said a city man who was recently charged with stealing five of the covers received $12 apiece for two that he sold as scrap metal.State police said they have investigated the theft of materials from electric substations, while Erie police continue to probe the theft of ground wires from utility poles throughout the city.In North East Township, supervisors scrambled a few weeks ago to get a sewage system pump station on Hirtzel Road operating again after someone cut out 500-foot strands of copper wire from two electrical panels that service the station. On Oct. 21, township crews preparing plow trucks for winter discovered that the batteries were stolen out of four trucks and a road grader parked in a storage barn.The cost to replace the missing wire at the pump station, which services the state Welcome Center on Interstate 90, was about $11,000, Supervisor Gus Neff said."Everyone asks if we're insured, but that's not the point. The point is, these people are taking this from the taxpayers, and that's what fries my eggs the most. It's just frustrating to think they would do this," Neff said.There has always been metal theft, said Barry Rider, general manage儲存 of Liberty Iron & Metal in Erie. It's just been escalating over the past few years as more people are out of work, he said.Erie police investigators working on the theft cases said they are now seeing a wider array of metal items being stolen, including iron and steel, where thieves once targeted more valuable metals like copper and bronze."They're taking people's grills, lawn furniture, ladders," Erie police Lt. Ken Merchant said. "Anywhere you find metal, people are victims. That's what it comes down to."Those selling stolen items, particularly new items like materials taken from local manufacturing plants, get a small fraction of what the materials cost the company. And it's costing businesses a lot of money to install fences, cameras and other security measures to protect against thefts, Merchant said.Rider can relate. He said Liberty Iron & Metal has 24-hour security because people have been entering the yard and stealing metal, which is then sold as scrap at other yards.Some of these thieves work in teams, with people positioned around the business to watch where the guards are and relay the information to others in the yard, he said."It's like a cat-and-mouse game," Rider said.Adding to the problem, Rider added, is that there are people out there willing to buy what they know isn't legitimate scrap metal.Erie police Detective Tom Gray said certain people at certain area scrap yards will call the police if they come across something suspicious that is being sold off as scrap. Police also know that a lot of stolen materials, particularly new materials, are being sold out of town, Gray said.Police are making some progress in catching the culprits. Gray said three of his scrap theft cases have gone to trial this year, and two more are scheduled for the November term.While police continue to hunt down thieves, victims are doing what they can to prevent themselves from being targeted again. At Erie Cemetery, where a metal downspout was also stolen recently, officials are exploring ways of making their metal storm grates a little less likely to vanish permanently."We're looking at how to make them identifiable so if they are turned into a scrap dealer we can identify them," Clarke Kuebler said.TIM HAHN can be reached at 870-1731 or by e-mail. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ETNhahn.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 the Erie Times-News (Erie, Pa.) Visit the Erie Times-News (Erie, Pa.) at .GoErie.com Distributed by MCT Information Servicesmini storage