On April 8, Rocky Mountain Power employees discovered that copper wire had been stolen from the company’s Pine Canyon substation, according to Jeff Hymas, Rocky Mountain Power spokesman. Then, on April 30, officials responded to a break in at the Tooele substation where copper wire was taken.
“Substations contain high-voltage electrical equipment. No one but trained and authorized personnel should ever enter a substation for any reason,” Hymas said. “The thief or thieves are very lucky they weren’t seriously injured or killed. It was an extremely dangerous and stupid thing to do.”
Hymas would not comment on the exact amount or value of copper stolen. The Tooele County Sheriff’s Office dealt with the Pine Canyon case, and estimated the total value of the wire taken and damage to the facility to be roughly $5,000, according to Lt. Jeff Morgan with the Sheriff’s Office. The Tooele Police Department responded to the Tooele case, and estimates total loss to also be about $5,000, according to Lt. Paul Wimmer with the Tooele Police Department.
In each incident, the chain-link fence surrounding the substation was cut, allowing the perpetrators to enter the facility. At Pine Canyon, a length of wire was unraveled from a spool on site and cut, Morgan said. At Tooele, big bundles of exposed copper wire sat in a concrete trough leading to a larger, underground vault of wire, Wimmer said. A portion of the above-ground wire was cut and taken back through the hole in the fence.
Officials are unsure of how many people were involved, but it was a job that could have been done by a single individual.
“Copper wire thefts are quite common,” Wimmer said. “Any loose wire or spooled wire left out can be taken.”
This half-inch wire is especially valuable because it is bare, Wimmer said. Individuals who steal copper wire that has been coated must first burn off the plastic or rubber before selling the copper for scrap. Officials have been working with a metal scrap facility in Salt Lake City that has, in the past, received stolen metals.
“Metal theft is a problem across many industries. It seems to be a growing problem,” Hymas said. “Whenever wire theft is discovered, we work closely with law enforcement and if the criminals are caught, we do prosecute.”
Wire kept at a substation can be implemented in many different ways and is used to both conduct electricity and as a ground wire, Hymas said. Only a limited amount of copper wire is kept at any substation. It is usually used at the facility and not transported and used elsewhere.
Rocky Mountain Power will fix the fences, Hymas said, although he would not comment about any additional security measures that may be taken.
“It’s a secured facility and we have signs warning people that they should not enter,” he said.
Copper thefts locally are not a new problem. In March 2007, a giant spool of copper wire, then valued at about $38,000, went missing from Dugway Proving Ground. Several employees believed to be involved were fired and banned from ever setting foot on post again, although none were ever charged with a crime.
Scott Spjut: scottspjut@tooeletranscript.com
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