Dallas residents are faced with power supply as organized copper thefts Surge – wfaa.com

Dallas – For the thieves in northern Texas copper is gold.

“If I see these devices that hang, I already know what to expect when I enter the House,” says Barbara Fluker, an oak rock resident until she pointed to electrical wires hanging in her backyard. She said that the copper thieves had cut wires in her neighborhood at least three times in the last year.

“So, it means we’ll get out of the Internet maybe a week, maybe two days, maybe three days. Sometimes it lasts as long as two weeks, “Fluker said.

This is not only her neighborhood. In the last year, WFAA has been talking to residents in the region of Redvard, the Northwest Dallas and Garland.

“You can see the big wires, the big thing that just hangs in the middle of the road,” Fluker said.

Carolyn King Arnold, a member of the Dallas Municipal Council, said she had even received a call for electricity interruptions due to copper theft. “Electrical wires can also be stationed. This can make residents lose their power, ”said King Arnold, representing District 4.” He has a domino effect because he eventually comes down to the pocket book. “

She said that the thefts of honey have become organized crime. “Now they can hire people. We understand that there are some homeless people who are part of the web because they pay them to search. You have persons who hire trucks, “said King Arnold.

She told the WFAA that part of the problem is that theft is a violation. “At the moment, they get a slap on the wrist when they are caught and then move on,” said King Arnold.

She works with state representatives to change this. She also said they need residents to report safely when they see honey theft.

Both King Arnold and Fluker also want to see improvements in the above ground wiring. “I think the wires, first of all, must be raised higher than those who are,” Fluker said.

City leaders said that if you see something, say something and always call 911 first.