COPPER thefts increasing in uk

metal thieves have stolen £3000 worth of train wheels as well as forklifts to go with it.
metal thieves have also caused an explosion at a keighley house.

in rochester,ny,us they are stealing sewer grates and even parts of stoves,only sell for a dew bucks.

there are cases of brass handles being stolen off flat doors.

A new initiative has been suggested in the "metal wars" - apparently scrap dealers are going to be asked to check the identity of people bringing scrap metal to get cash. I can't think that this will work, maybe with some dealers but most will just carry on as normal:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/8981340/Scrap-metal-dealers-to-demand-ID.html

The Telegraph

Scrap metal dealers to demand ID
People selling scrap metal will have to show proof of identity under a pilot scheme which comes into force next week.

'Two Forms (Divided Circle)' by Barbara Hepworth was stolen from Dulwich Park Photo: SOUTHWARK COUNCIL
By David Millward, Transport Editor6:12PM GMT 28 Dec 2011
An estimated 240 dealers in north east England have signed up to the project which could be rolled out to the rest of the country as the Government looks to stem the wave of thefts which are costing the economy an estimated £1 billion a year.
The six-month trial, known as Operation Tornado, is seen as a dry run for legislation which could be introduced next year.
"It is one of a number of measures that is currently being explored to restrict the sale and movement of stolen metal,” said Chief Insp Robin Edwards, a spokesman for the Association of Chief Police Officers.
"It has been designed not to inhibit those dealers that operate legitimate businesses, but to remove unscrupulous dealers who operate outside the law."
Under the new scheme, sellers of scrap metal will have to produce either a photocard driving licence, or a passport or national ID card, as well as a utility bill less than three months old.
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North-east England is one of the areas worst hit by metal theft and Durham, one of the counties participating in the scheme, has seen more than 2,500 metal thefts in the first 10 months of the year.
The thieves have hit an array of targets across the country as the price of metal has soared on the world markets.
Railway passengers have been hit by repeated delays because of regular thefts of signalling cable. War memorials have been desecrated and valuable sculptures, including a work by Barbara Hepworth, have disappeared.
In most cases the metal is melted down for scrap and often eventually shipped to China after being passing through the hands of a series of dealers.
“Metal theft is a serious and growing problem and the government is working hard with industry, police and law enforcement agencies to tackle it,” said Lord Henley, a Home Office Minister.
"It is clear law dating back to the 1960s is not sufficient to deal with an increasingly organised crime. That is why we are we are looking at a range of legislative options, including ending payments in cash for scrap metal.
"In the meantime we are working with the police and other law enforcement agencies on immediate action to target metal thieves and rogue scrap metal dealers who trade in stolen goods.’’
The epidemic of metal thefts in recent months has triggered a series of ministerial meetings across Whitehall.
While there is widespread support for updating the 1964 Scrap Metal Dealers Act, it is understood that there has been some resistance to new legislation from officials within the Department of Business.
In addition the scrap metal industry itself has argued that using existing legislation more effectively would go far to stemming the wave of thefts.
Ian Hetherington, director general of the British Metals Recycling Association said:
“It is important to note that many of the problems encountered by legitimate metal recyclers lie with the ineffective enforcement of existing regulations and the proliferation of the illegal, unregulated trade, and not with the majority who operate highly regulated, licensed and permitted sites."
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I FORGOT TO MENTION THAT THERE WAS AN MANHOLE EXPLOSION IN ALNWICH CAUSED BY CABLE THEFT.

A MAN APPEARED IN DURHAM? COURT,HE GOT BURNED WHILE ATTEMPTING A COPPER THEFTS FROM AN UNUSED GARAGE.
SO BURNED HE COULDN'T SIT IN A MAGISTRATES COURT AND IS HAVING SKIN GRAFTS.

SOME METAL THEFTS IN TEXAS ATTACKED AND KILLED A HORSE AS WELL.

I READ IN THE SUNDAY TIMES(WENT TODAY TO BUY A NEWSPAPER THINKING IT IS MONDAY,DON'T NORMALLY BUY A WEEKEND NEWSPAPER) THAT THAMES WATER ARE PLANTING`LANDMINES' WHICH SPRAY METAL THIEVES WITH SMART WATER.
THE STUFF IS HARD TO GET OFF.

Badboy wrote:I READ IN THE SUNDAY TIMES(WENT TODAY TO BUY A NEWSPAPER THINKING IT IS MONDAY,DON'T NORMALLY BUY A WEEKEND NEWSPAPER) THAT THAMES WATER ARE PLANTING`LANDMINES' WHICH SPRAY METAL THIEVES WITH SMART WATER.
THE STUFF IS HARD TO GET OFF.

I was out walking this afternoon by a canal and crossing over a railway bridge, there was a sign that said all the cable was forensically marked by SmartWater.

http://www.smartwater.com/Home.aspx

ETA: From the SmartWater web site:

Using SmartWater to Keep Crime Low
Villagers near Wigan are putting SmartWater to work on their homes and belongings even though they live in a low-crime area – because they want it to stay that way.

Police are providing SmartWater marking kits to residents of the village of Dalton due to its powers as a deterrent to criminals.

Around 300 homes are receiving the kits, which have been funded by the Lancashire Partnership Against Crime. Volunteers have been visiting individual properties to hand them out and advise residents on applying the special forensic liquid to their valuables, electrical items and other belongings.

Each batch of SmartWater contains a unique code that identifies the legitimate owner of any item that is marked with it. The liquid is colourless when applied but shows up under ultraviolet lights which many of the UK's police forces now use routinely.

Sergeant Steve Hackney, of Wigan Police, said: “Not only does SmartWater help us to return items to owners in the event of a theft but there is a big deterrent factor as it makes would-be burglars think twice.

“Dalton is a rural village and crime is low but, due to the location, it can be a target for cross-border crime.

“This is part of our dedication to ensuring that crime remains low. We hope that the introduction of SmartWater will ultimately prevent burglaries and theft.”

As well as the SmartWater liquid itself, residents will receive window stickers for their homes and warning stickers to place on marked property.

metal thieves have stolen 18km of cable from a wolverhampton area railway,£600,000 worth of cable etc
train buffers are being stolen.
smart water will one day make it very difficult for thieves to escape.

The perfect time to give the cornish back their livelihoods! Reopen the mines!

TODAY IN MY LOCAL NEWSPAPER,IT REPORTS THAT METAL THIEVES TRIED TO STRIP THE LEAD FROM THE ROOF OF THE LOCAL BANDSTAND.
POLICE WHO ARE LOCATED ABOUT 300 YARDS AGO CHASED THEM OFF

SOME COPPER THIEVE STOLE A COOPER ITEM IN A BLOCK OF FLATS IN COVENTRY,CAUSED FLOODING.
COPPER ITEMS WAS WORTH £1

I SEE METAL THIEVES SEEM TO HAVE TAKEN TO STEALING TANK SHELLS ALLEGEDLY IN ISRAEL.

IN USA,METAL THIEVES ARE STEALING FIRE HYDRANTS?, THAT HELP FIREFIGHTERS TO FIGHT FIRE.

Copper thieves battled with new anti-theft telecoms cable

Drastically cuts amount of valuable copper in cable

By John E Dunn | Techworld | Published: 17:29, 13 January 2012

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The epidemic of telecom cable thefts has prompted a US company to develop a new design that drastically cuts down the copper content in a bid to deter metal thieves.
The GroundSmart Copper Clad Steel cable is probably the most radical solution yet devised to copper theft in that it removes almost all of the copper grounding (in the UK ‘earthing’) metal of the sort commonly used in networks to return current to earth for safety reasons.
Unlike conventional cables made from solid copper, the GroundSmart consists of a steel core around which is bonded a copper outer casing, forming an equally effective but far less valuable cable.

so it"s not only the U.K. affected by copper thieves!!

ADMITTELY,COPPER/METAL THEFTS IS ALL OVER THE WORLD,BEKAA VALLEY,LEBANON,INDIA?,JAKARTA,INDONESIA,BAHAMAS,SOUTH AFRICA ETC ETC

Badboy wrote:ADMITTELY,COPPER/METAL THEFTS IS ALL OVER THE WORLD,BEKAA VALLEY,LEBANON,INDIA?,JAKARTA,INDONESIA,BAHAMAS,SOUTH AFRICA ETC ETC

Looks like the scientists will have to find another metal Badboy, the price of copper has escalated .

THE HEAD OF WESSEX WATER HAS WARNED THAT A CIVIL EMEREGENCY COULD OCCUR AS A RESULT OF METAL THEFT.

METAL FRONT GATES ARE ALSO BEING STOLEN.

Badboy wrote:THE HEAD OF WESSEX WATER HAS WARNED THAT A CIVIL EMEREGENCY COULD OCCUR AS A RESULT OF METAL THEFT.

METAL FRONT GATES ARE ALSO BEING STOLEN.

Badboy, the World is in a sorry state when thieves endanger lives , even in the times of rationing after the War ended in 1945 there was nothing llike
this going on.

METAL THIEVES HAVE STOLEN CABLES DISCONNECTING A POLICE CONTROL CENTRE IN HERTFORDSHIRE.
METAL THIEVES HAVE TAKEN TO TARGETING HOSPITALS IN SOUTH WALES EVERY WEEK?,PEOPLE BETTER NOT NOT GET SICK/UNWELL IN THOSE PARTS.

TWO METAL THIEVES TOOK A VAN ONTO A RAILWAY,RISKING BEING HIT BY A TRAIN.
THIS WAS IN YORKSHIRE OR HUMBERSIDE.

METAL THIEVES HAVE STOLEN A BRIDGE IN DARLINGTON.

How the heck do they manage to steal these things?
What will be next??

wjk wrote:How the heck do they manage to steal these things?
What will be next??

A SPACE ROCKET PERHAPS?