Dec 28, 2006 11:02 am US/Central
Authorities Warn About Copper Thieves
St. Paul (AP) ―
St. Paul's fire marshal is warning owners and neighbors of vacant buildings to beware of copper thieves.
Fire Marshal Steve Zaccard said burglars who have been breaking into vacant homes in St. Paul to steal copper also have been triggering gas leaks.
Zaccard says neighbors contacted authorities after smelling gas outside the vacant homes -- and that likely prevented the leaks from becoming explosions.
"These are potentially very dangerous explosions waiting to happen," Zaccard said.
Soaring copper prices are spurring the thefts. Construction sites are often the scene of the thefts, but St. Paul is now seeing copper thefts from vacant homes.
Lt. Amelia Huffman, a Minneapolis police spokeswoman, said a vacant home there exploded earlier this month when burglars cut gas lines to get copper
Chuck Repke, head of the North East Neighborhoods Development Corp. in St. Paul, agreed copper thieves are something private property owners now have to be aware of.
"Anybody who's been in the construction business knows there's horrendous copper thieves, but I'm not sure it's something people who have vacant properties have been thinking about."
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