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Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 25
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adamb Offline OP
Member
May 19, 2006

BANGOR, Maine --Maine state police are investigating break-ins at Bangor-Hydro Co. electrical substations in which valuable copper was stolen.
Boston.com News Story


(edited to shorten Link)


[This message has been edited by Webmaster (edited 05-20-2006).]

Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 680
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Would anyone shead a tear if they did die doing this, that is vandalizing substations and stealing the copper?. I sure wouldn't. No doubt druggies looking for some more Oxy Contin or herion

Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 558
R
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It would be a sad site I think if that happened, ER should I say when it WILL happen...

A.D

Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,143
D
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Don't know if it's druggies - scrapping is a lot of work.

[bitter rant]Of course, some thieves (DBA "Scrappers) came into my yard while I was gone and stole my spare 2" RMC risers and a few lengths of EMT and RMC I had lying in the woodpile between jobs.

They also stole eight section of scaffolding and several 10' of allthread I'd scrounged from jobsites.

And going to the scrapyards isn't worth the trip - all I got were blank stares and "I dunno... We get a lot of stuff in here" answers... even though it's kind of obvious if you're hauling in scaffolding.

But going there reminds me of the payday loan stores - 1" thick bulletproof glass and cash pass-throughs.

I say let 'em cut it, preferably live, and let the PoCo find some crispy critters when they troubleshoot the call. [/bitter rant]

Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 9,923
Likes: 32
G
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I often wonder why the scrap yards do not get charged with "receiving".
I have seen big spools of solid, clearly marked FPL, sitting in the copper bin.
They have full spools of THHN on a cart, for sale. I guess it is a cheap place to get your wire but you might actually be buying YOUR wire.


Greg Fretwell
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 391
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Quote
I guess it is a cheap place to get your wire but you might actually be buying YOUR wire.
Exactly. Which is precisely the reason people shouldn't buy from scrap-yards.

It's like buying that slightly-used DeWalt kit from some joker of the street for $300 less than retail. Yeah, it's cheap for you, but it's gonna cost the original owner a fortune to replace it when they discover that joker stole it.

You buy from criminals and it encourages crime.

-John

Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 1,691
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Not to mention that if -- by some freak chance, such as working on the same project someday -- the original owner sees YOU with it, he'll think you were the one who stole it.

Not pretty. [Linked Image]

Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 169
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Although I detest stealing of any sort I can make make more money buy working rather than busting my hump to pull a bunch of copper out of a sub-station. If these people put more time into working rather than stealing they would have a lot more money. Totally UNBELIVEABLE

Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 25
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adamb Offline OP
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The part I can't figure out is how they got 4 different places. I would think that it would take a long time to strip the copper out. People must have called to report a power outage, but the guys were gone by the time hydro got their?

[This message has been edited by adamb (edited 05-20-2006).]

Joined: Jul 2002
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I've driven by said substations many times. This a very rural area in Maine,at night 99.9% chance you will never see a cop or maybe a even another car. Logging truck is a different story [Linked Image]. I'm thinking what they got was bonding wire, bare copper so not much work involved after the theft??. It was reported on the news that local scrap yards have been notified but my guess is boston or portland area will get it??

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