The Mississippi Department of Transportation issued the following statement.
The Mississippi Department of Transportation has been repeatedly hit by copper thieves in the Jackson metro area. The latest heist, the theft of 2,500 feet of copper wires to the interstate lights at Pearl street and I-55.
Brad White, MDOT Executive Director - “We’ve had 18 different locations where this has happened that left us with interchanges and roadways in the dark. The value of this specific location at Pearl Street is about $13 thousand dollars.”
Brian Ratliff, MDOT Chief Engineer - “We went up there and looked at the structure mounted pull box. They’re busting those apart. They’re either hooking to a vehicle with a rope tied to our copper wire that’s inside the conduit mounted to the bridges and they’re pulling it out, rolling it up and getting away.”
A previous theft of copper of wires to the lights at Waterworks curve was valued at $30 thousand dollars. The cost to taxpayers to replace the wires, even greater. The thieves putting themselves and motorists at risk.
Brian Ratliff - “The roadway lighting increases the safety for the traveling public.”
MDOT is working closely with law enforcement to develop measures to stop the wire thieves before they strike again.
Brad White - “Were looking at cameras that can maybe help us help the law enforcement agencies locally identify who is doing this. We’ve talked frankly about leaving the lights on all the time and putting up warning signs and other things that we’ve go live wire there.”
MDOT will likely have to hire outside contractors to assist in replacing the wires, another burden on taxpayers. The public is being asked to report any suspicious activity near the interstate lights, to prevent copper thefts in the future.
24 comments:
Hard to believe that this is going-on without any witnesses. Leaving them energized is a nice deterrent but won't be approved because of the waste of energy. Most scrap dealers are aware of -- and held liable for -- stolen copper passing through their hands. Put up cameras and put these bastards away.
Who are the buyers? Start there.
"To sell certain types of recyclables, you must have a business license to own the product and must wait several days to receive payment. We are prohibited by law from purchasing certain types of recyclables from the general public"
That sign (or a semblance of it) is about as credible and enforced as the sign that says, "Employees must wash hands before returning to shift".
Don't count on MHP finding out or responding in a timely manner.
Give the thieves some shock treatment.
For that kind of money it would be cost effective for MHP troopers on overtime to be stationed along the problem areas. But bureaucrats can't think outside the box.
Why not utilize the overwhelming solution of the Liberal do gooders?
Install a windmill on top of each light pole!!!!!
The thieves are probably not taking the copper wire to buyers. That would surely raise red flags. My guess is they are melting it down into untraceable shapes - perhaps bars or rounds. That makes it completely untraceable for both the seller and the buyer.
@ 11:09, that’s probably true but the only way this will stop is for the recyclers to be banned from purchasing any type of copper at all.
11:09 AM
I bet they aren't selling it local either.
You call it "copper theft," but we at MDOT call it "job security."
If MDOT put the pedal to the metal they would have this wired.
Put Trooper E31 on street light patrol in Jackson.
"Install a windmill on top of each light pole!"
That might help curb the unmet demand for cornmeal, but I'd suggest a wind turbine instead. ;)
leaving them on won't help, i have tower sites where dopeheads have used similar means to steal the electrical drop from up the pole then underground to the meter base.
The MHP is too busy stalking bird flippers to be bothered with this problem.
Why not a solar panel, with a battery setup? I'm sure the Bribem administration would support, and finance that.
Anyone buying scrap metal of any kind in the state is required to be registered with the Secretary of State. Those dealers must document every piece of metal they buy including photos of the seller and the seller's vehicle and license plate. Then the metal cannot be re-sold for some period of time so that police can get the word out about thefts. Dealers are required to keep current on theft reports and to turn over stolen metal to the authorities. Delbert built the system and set up an interstate network so that thieves couldn't just go to Alabama and sell it.
Now the Jacktown thugs are stealing AT&T copper cable from utility poles in the Fondren.
https://nextdoor.com/p/rJH-YGGgK2xN/c/876165654?utm_source=share
https://www.sepco-solarlighting.com/solar-street-lighting
Plenty of benchmarking can be done one these systems designed and installed by SEPCO in Dallas and Florida (Martin Co. Airport) to evaluate cost and effectiveness.
You have a lot of very ignorant posters, some with strong opinions, others with strong biases, very few with meaningful problem solving.
Thank you JJ for opening this window into local society.
@ December 29, 2022 at 5:45 PM
Thanks for stopping by and offering your invaluable contribution.
My valuable contribution was at 5:42.
The 5:45 was an observation, and a sincere thank you.
I don’t stop by; I’m an avid fan and regular reader, but an infrequent commenter.
Hey 7:04 pm,
If you throw a stone into a pack of dogs, the one that barked is the one it hit.
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