Man trying to steal copper wire causes power outage for more than 1,000 customers, police say
Trying to steal copper wire from a PECO transformer, he suffered severe burns and is in critical condition, police said.
A man trying to steal copper wire from a transformer in Northeast Philadelphia severely burned himself and caused a temporary power outage for more than 1,000 people Wednesday night, police and Peco officials said.
Around 10:25 p.m. Wednesday, the would-be thief broke into a ground-mounted transformer on the 9300 block of Roosevelt Boulevard, police said. The man, whom police did not identify but described as between 40 and 50 years old, used some sort of cutting tool, likely a knife, and when it came into contact with the wires, he was electrocuted and suffered severe burns to his face, shoulders, and hands, Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore said. He was rushed to Jefferson Torresdale Hospital and placed in critical condition, and later airlifted to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital for further treatment, Vanore said.
A fire broke out next to the transformer, which is owned by Peco, but firefighters arrived shortly after to extinguish the blaze..
The attempted theft caused an outage to more than 1,100 Peco customers, said Greg Smore, a company spokesperson. There were 1,075 customers who experienced outages of a few minutes, while 47 customers had to wait around an hour for their power to be restored, he said.
As of Thursday morning, power was completely restored to all customers and crews were working on the transformer, said Smore, who denounced the attempted theft.
“The theft of equipment like this is not only illegal, it’s dangerous,” he said.
It was the second time in three days that an attempted theft of copper components led to a power outage, officials said.
Early Tuesday morning, firefighters responded to the 4000 block of Frankford Avenue and found burn marks on a Peco-owned pole, police said. Around 2:45 a.m., Smore said, two people cut into power lines at the Peco pole, causing an outage for 1,700 customers.
Around 1,300 customers experienced an outage for a few minutes, while 450 customers were without power for 52 minutes, he said.
Thieves often sell pilfered copper to scrap yards. The price of copper has gone up, Vanore said, likely leading to increased thefts.