CHARLOTTE, N.C.,None — Police are investigating two reports of thieves climbing utility poles and stealing thousands of dollars in copper wiring.
The incidents happened just a couple of miles apart in west Charlotte, and officers said they believe the crimes are connected.
One on Remount Road occurred Tuesday morning; the other, on Ashley Road, occurred earlier in August.
Duke Energy officials said Wednesday they take the thefts very seriously. They said it was one of their employees driving by who spotted thieves stealing the wires Tuesday and reported it to police.
Remount Road residents Paulette and Alan Gooden didn't know why their power went out this week until Eyewitness News explained how thieves stole the wiring from the utility poles.
"I don't know why they would go to that extreme," Paulette Gooden said.
Police said the thieves drove away with $7,000 in copper wiring early Tuesday morning.
Thieves also stole about $9,000 in copper wiring from utility poles on Ashley Road.
"We're actively investigating," Detective Tom Geisler said.
Duke Energy spokeswoman Betsy Conway said the company is taking steps, such as using wiring that is not made of copper and posting signs to make people aware of it.
"It has no scrap value," Conway said.
But when thefts do happen, the costs eventually trickle down to customers. Conway said there are dangerous potential effects as well when someone tampers with the system.
"There's a potential for a lot of things to go wrong, be it power outages, be it fires or even death for the individual," she said.
In the Goodens' case, power didn't go out immediately. However, Duke Energy crews did cut power to 204 homes, including the Goodens, for about an hour while repairing the lines Tuesday afternoon.
"I think it's ridiculous," Alan Gooden said of the thefts. "I can't imagine anyone putting their life in jeopardy to steal something."
Duke Energy is asking customers to be on the lookout for any suspicious activity near utility poles. Officials said their crews are always clearly marked as Duke Energy and use specialized equipment instead of scaling the poles on foot or using simple ladders.
Meanwhile, lawmakers across the Carolinas are clamping down on scrap metal sales. In North Carolina, anyone selling metal needs to show a driver's license, a license plate and explain where he or she got the scrap metal.
South Carolina legislators passed a law in July requiring metal sellers to apply for a permit at their local sheriff's office.