Post by ScottPost by Ken Whttps://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy0916r00kdo
Power cables worth £100,000 have been stolen from a railway line over
Christmas.
Network Rail warned passengers to expect disruption between Chorley and Bolton
and services to Preston to be affected on Sunday following the theft.
How do the thieves convert cables to cash these days? I thought the old "weigh
in" for cash by the scrap trade had been banned.
I think the same thing happened with the Paisley Canal
electrification. I wondered at the time: could they not create an
alarm system fairly easily by passing a current along the line then if
continuity is broken an alarm goes off at BTP? I thought there was
also talk about energising the cables earlier in construction?
Energising cables isn’t a deterrent to organised criminals who know what
they are doing A long length of thick flexible cable such as used on
welders with one end attached to a ground stake
the other end a small grapnel or lightweight anchor , give it a good throw
and turn away till the sparks stop flying Yes there are risks but criminals
are used to taking those.
I know I making a point that is an insult to a lot of hard working people
but there is probably a link somewhere to the contractors doing the work,
with numerous people taken on for doing these installations there is going
to be the odd one who tips off an “ acquaintance” that there is a window of
opportunity between the conductors being strung and commissioning for a
payoff.
It only takes one bad apple.
GH