$25 000 in estimated damages due to increasing wire theft

Feb 3, 2025 | 4:28 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – The last six months have seen an increase in copper wire theft in Prince George, with street lights being targeted.

“Thieves are targeting our street lights usually around residential areas where there isn’t a lot of vehicle traffic and it’s a little bit darker,” said the City of Prince George’s Supervisor of Water Pumphouse and Trades Ryan Makow.

Makow estimates there’s been $25,000 in repair costs since October, but beyond the costs Makow adds it also takes away valuable time that could be used elsewhere.

“It’s eating up the time of our maintenance electricians. A lot of times, we have to do full repairs. It’s not only the cost of the wire, it’s basically the manpower and the equipment that we need,” Makow said.

While the street lights do have tamper proof bolts, Makow says the thieves have been able to get around this, and from there they cut the wire to steal the copper. He says 150 feet of wire is typically stolen at a time, as this is the space between two street lights, and estimates this would sell for anywhere between $30-40. Makow asks if you see anyone acting suspiciously around a street light to please call RCMP.

College of New Caledonia

CNC President addresses the 2026-27 budget

B.C. wildfire season outlook

3h ago

“We’re just asking the public, if they can see individuals at night, especially acting strange around street lights or down on their knees looking like they’re causing problems to to city infrastructure, just to call the RCMP and their non-emergency line and just report what’s going on,” he said.

Local news. Delivered. Free. Subscribe to our daily news wrap and get our top local stories delivered to your inbox every evening.

by Tommy Osborne

Click here to report an error or typo in this article

$25 000 in estimated damages due to increasing wire theft

What's Trending