Newfoundland Power offers reward Copper wire stolen from Freshwater substation ELIZABETH MACDONALD The Charter

Placentia-Whitbourne Constable Darren Legere holds a sample of the copper wire that was stolen from the Clark's Pond Substation in Freshwater, owned by Newfoundland Power last week. He's also standing next to the now repaired hole cut through the fencing to gain access to the yard. Police are still investigating the theft. Newfoundland Power warns that the vandals put their employees, the public and themselves at great risk in participating in such activities.

Newfoundland Power's Freshwater substation has once again been broken into and an amount of copper wire stolen by vandals.

Newfoundland Power said they discovered the theft on Sunday, Nov. 15 when they found a hole cut through the security fence surrounding the facility. Ground wire was removed, critical to the reliability and safety of the electrical system there.

Placentia-Whitbourne RCMP are investigating the incident and noted a similar incident took place at the same substation around this time last year.

"It was pretty close to the exact same time as last year," said Sgt. Cahill. "We believe they are connected. It is in a similar spot they came in through, around the back. This was done possibly with the use of quads and that was what was done last year. Any information people may have of quads in the area, they should contact the police through the usual avenues," he said.

Sgt. Cahill said the police also believe the person or person responsible either have an electrical background or an accomplice does.

But, event with that knowledge, the thieves didn't quite get what they were expecting, Sgt. Cahill explained.

"The wire they took was worthless this year because last year, Newfoundland Power replaced it with this new type of wire that doesn't have any value. It's not copper. There is a small percentage of it that is... and it has the same conductivity as copper, the same properties, but it is not high value on the metals market, but I don't think the people knew that."

Sgt. Cahill admitted the police don't have a good lead into the incident and are hoping a tip from the public will help with the investigation.

"Although they are not getting a high value from their efforts, it costs Newfoundland Power a great deal," said Sgt. Cahill. "We also suspect that one day we'll come across something like this and go in there and find someone lying out."

Newfoundland Power also highlighted the danger to their employees and the thieves in the press release they issued about the matter.

"Vandals put our employees, the public and themselves at great risk by breaking into a substation and tampering with electrical equipment," said Newfoundland Power's vice president of Engineering and Operations, Gary Smith. "This type of senseless activity can lead to serious injury, or death, in addition to impacting public safety, system reliability and customer service.

"These incidents are extremely disturbing and we cannot understand why individuals would put their lives, and the lives of our employees and the general public, in danger. Acts of vandalism, such as this one, not only leave our electricity system vulnerable, but create accessibility to our high voltage substation yards. This should be of particular concern for individuals with young children living in the area. It is unacceptable and we want to put a stop to it before someone is badly injured, or possibly killed. Individuals should never enter a substation or tamper with electrical equipment."

The company is offering a $5,000 reward to anyone who provides information that leads to the arrest ad conviction of the person or people responsible.

editor@thecharter.ca