Posted on 07/08/2008 3:01:55 PM PDT by OrangeDaisy
Although a new state law is making it harder to sell illegally obtained scrap metal, a cell phone tower at Tracy City that was pulled down apparently to get copper indicates how far thieves will go to get what recently has become a "precious" material.
The incident occurred late Friday or early Saturday when guy wires were cut to get a DTC Wireless tower to fall in an apparent effort to get copper wiring, according to Ricky Gibbs, DTC cellular and marketing manager.
The tower is owned by Wireless Properties and is leased by DTC Wireless.
Gibbs summed up his thoughts.
"This is a major event that was out of our control, however, we are working as rapidly as possible to restore temporary service to a tower owned by Sequatchie Valley Electric Cooperative.
"We appreciate SVEC allowing us to use their tower during the interim."
Rene Wilson, DTC marketing coordinator, said the 360-foot tower remained down in a wooded area this week with service not expected to be fully restored in another two weeks.
"We’ve been working on it day and night," she said. "We want to get service fully restored as soon as possible."
Wilson said authorities are investigating but had not confirmed that the incident had occurred to get scrap metal.
However, Gibbs said it was likely.
David Cleveland, who is in charge of sales and purchasing at CFC Recycling near Tullahoma, said scrap metal prices are at an all-time high.
Copper is now selling at slightly more than $3 per pound, he said, adding that stolen scrap metal has been escalating during the past year.
Cleveland said a weak dollar value overseas has increased scrap metal demand because foreign markets can buy more U.S. products at a cheaper rate than ever before.
He said the process has driven prices up worldwide, and they are bound to remain.
In addition to scrap copper, heating and air conditioning unit coils made from copper and aluminum and automobile catalytic converters that contain platinum are hot items highly targeted by thieves, Cleveland said.
Thefts involving those products have been on the rise since prices have increased, he said.
Although scrap metal prices have greatly escalated, the Tennessee Legislature has taken counter measures, passing a new law that went into effect July 1 that covers all ferrous and non-ferrous metals.
Those who save their aluminum cans to recycle are excluded from the act.
The law requires that the scrap metal seller must prove ownership with a receipt or some other verifiable means.
Sellers will also have to have their identifications verified.
Cleveland said scrap dealers face the greatest burden in dealing with the law due to the additional requirements, including registering with the state by Oct. 1 and renewing every two years.
Any would-be dealer convicted for violating the new law or anyone with theft, burglary or vandalism convictions related to scrap metal transactions is barred from registering with the state within five years from the conviction date.
In addition to determining the seller’s identity, the dealer will have to keep detailed transaction records, including name, sex, height, birth date, address, license plate number and vehicle make and model numbers. With commercial vehicles, the business or leasing company name is required.
Other requirements involve recording seller’s right thumbprints and transaction dollar amounts.
The records will have to be maintained three years and be open to police inspection at any time without warrant or subpoena. Subpoenas and warrants may be executed at any time to inspect purchased materials.
Dealers are authorized to charge $5 per transaction to maintain the records.
The new law also includes materials that dealers may not buy under any circumstances, beginning with anything marked as belonging to telephone or utility companies.
Also on the list are manhole and water meter covers, streetlights, guardrails, traffic lights, street signs and beer kegs.
The law also provides complex rules about how sellers may be paid.
Cleveland said a five-day waiting period in some cases is required to ensure transactions are legal.
He said most scrap metal sellers are involved in legal transactions and don’t mind the wait.
Well, looks like the US is fast becoming another Third World nation. Great job, American leaders and stupid voters!
“Can you hear me now?”
Cellshucking who would’ve thought?
This is so funny:
“The new law also includes materials that dealers may not buy under any circumstances, beginning with anything marked as belonging to telephone or utility companies.
Also on the list are manhole and water meter covers, streetlights, guardrails, traffic lights, street signs and beer kegs. “
Anyone out there have a spare guardrail? lol
How much copper can be on a cell tower? The wires going up for power, ok. But what else?
Crack heads, meth heads and crooked scrap dealers and metal price increases guarantee more of this.
Went to my Fathers grave on Memorial day and most of the flower vases around his grave were missing.
How about a “spare” railroad track, that shouldn’t go with out notice for long? /S
Along with recently unemployed illegal aliens from the construction industry....
I was working in El Paso, and had no less than four to five persons per hour trolling thru the parking lot of my hotel looking for scrap anything, including carpet, wood, pallets, and my bbq grill...
They will steal anything.
Actually, it can run to thousands of pounds. Very little of it is in the form or electrical power line (as you are probably envisioning). Most of it is in the form of the actual transmission lines that service each antenna and, if the sight employs any microwave paths, the wave guide for the microwave path (usually two runs, main and diversity).
If you haven't guessed, I work for a wireless phone company, and while I don't climb the towers myself, I do work with the tower crews and I work with the equipment that is connected to the top. If a tower is "sectorized", i.e., divided into three or even four sectors (rather than omni-directional), you will have a lot of copper lines running up. For instance, one sector will have at least two antennas (sometimes three or four), each one serviced by a line. In our case, we use 1 and 5/8" lines (some use smaller, some use bigger) that have two "tubes" of copper separated by a foam barrier running up the antennas. If we have a four sectored site, with three antennas per sector, that is a total of twelve lines, times the length of the run (sometimes well over 300 ft.) of copper.
This is just a very simplified description of what is actually on a typical tower, but I think you can start to see why it attracts these kinds of thieves. The good news is that they probably didn't get much of it, as likely someone was paged out and dispatched to the sight as soon as service was lost, and it takes longer than you would think to get those lines out of the clips or wire ties that hold them there, even if you are just chopping and stacking.
Any street person could figure out how to steal metal.
Years ago, street signs were made of a good grade of aluminum, at least a 1/4" thick.
We'd consume the contents of a keg, then go out and look for street signs, with which we would fashion parts (they call them "billet", now) for our chop/bob motorcycles.
Or did we look for the street signs and then consume the contents of a keg?
Any way, street signs ain't made out of aluminum anymore and the only way to get "billet" stuff for your scoot is to shell out big bucks.
Anyone out there have a spare guardrail? lol
Fortunately, one of these never came into play, in the midst of the sign stealing, keg consuming, bob/chop motorcycle riding activities of my misspent "youth".
Wow! Thanks for the great info.
By my estimate this act will net them a maximum of $700. Was that really worth it? They could get 20 years for this. You could get more by swiping a chain from a granny on a subway car.
Just curious,what $ loss would you estimate on
a destroyed cell tower?
Got an e-mail from my brother a couple months ago, it had graphic photos of some idiot trying to cut down live power lines with bolt cutters. Two went up in a bucket lift with hazmat suits to free the charred body, two others in suits went up in a front end loader bucket to lower the body down.
Why? Because some idiots think it’s easier to steal copper than to work?
Scrap sales over $15 at some recycling stations require ID by seller.
The tower alone would be well into 6 figures, then factor in the cost of stacking it, rigging it (just the labor costs) then the materials (the copper, etc.) and you really have quite a sum. Add the lost revenue from the down time of the site and it is definitely not something you would settle in small claims court. I would imagine that the company’s insurance agent is developing a small ulcer about now...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.