Not only is copper theft illegal and on the rise, it’s also downright dangerous!

Not only is copper theft illegal and on the rise, it’s also downright dangerous. 

So many articles and stories have been written this year alone about individuals breaching the perimeter of electrical substations and making off with hundreds, sometimes thousands of dollars worth of copper wire. As the value of copper has risen from around $2 in 2009 to just over $4 in 2011, the ever increasing trend of illegal theft continues. Along telephone poles or right of ways some of this infrastructure isn’t protected at all.  However, it’s the copper that IS protected (poorly) that remains the most dangerous to the perpetrator. An easily passable perimeter fence is the only defense some critical infrastructure locations utilize in preventing theft or in these cases, death. As criminals are becoming more intelligent, daring and creative in their methods so should a power companies outdoor perimeter surveillance techniques. 

An untrained and uninformed criminal isn’t thinking about what he can’t touch when entering an electric substation. It’s this miscalculation that can transfer 250,000 volts into his/her body. Having a useful tool like the EVENT GUARD TRL  added to ones perimeter could help to provide real time event driven surveillance and prevention of such acts. While I’m not trumpeting the EVENT GUARD TRL as a life saving device I am saying however, that it’s a side thought when considering the importance of fully protecting important assets that are surrounded by dangerous conditions. Check out Axial Technologies entire product line to see what works for you.