SPECIAL TO THE PVT

Special to the PVT Scorch marks indicated where an apparent copper thief struck a live wire early Sunday morning. A bloody glove was among the items found at the scene off Highway 160 that suggest at least one individual was injured, perhaps seriously. Advertisement

When it rains, it pours, and Valley Electric Association officials could use a whole gross of raincoats.

Once again, vandalism that caused a power outage struck the co-op. At approximately 1 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 21, thieves broke into Valley Electric Association's (VEA) Sandy Valley substation, located off Highway 160 near the Sandy Valley exit, and tried to steal copper wire.

VEA personnel arrived at the substation at approximately 1:50 a.m. and saw a pickup truck leaving the area. The license plate number could not be recorded, according to Sheriff Tony DeMeo.

As the employees entered the substation, they found that the lock was cut and the thieves' power tools and other equipment were left behind, along with bloody gloves and blood on the structure where the wire is located. "They must have thought that the line was dead when they went to cut the wire but were mistaken, and someone was seriously injured or even killed," said a VEA spokesperson.

The substation is located in Clark County, so the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department was contacted, and officers arrived at the scene at approximately 2:30 a.m.; CSI arrived about an hour later. The Nye County Sheriff's Office was also notified. Restoring power was delayed two hours due to the investigation.

Sandy Valley and Mountain Springs are fed by the 138kV line from that substation and were without power for approximately six to seven hours.

This marks the fourth incident within two months.

In December, the Pahrump substation was broken into and thieves stole copper wire from that location.

Then in the same month, the Gamebird substation was broken into, but this time thieves stole the fence.

The most serious incident began Between Dec. 1, 2006, and Jan. 13. At some point between those two dates, a vandal blasted a high-velocity .223-caliber bullet through the 230 kV line near Sandy Valley and Good Springs.

When the line snapped in two just before 4 a.m. the 13th, power was doused for all of Pahrump, Sandy Valley and Mountain Springs. Some VEA customers were out of electricity for more than 24 hours.

Metal and copper prices have increased all around the world, VEA reported, and as a result, electric utilities nationwide have been targeted. "There are numerous cases of fatalities that have been reported as thieves mistakenly tried to hack into energized power lines in search of copper," the spokesperson said.

Thomas Husted, CEO, said the co-op is offering a reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those involved in this case. All information must be directed to the Nye County Sheriff's Office or the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Dept.

VEA is asking for assistance from its members and from the public at large to report any suspicious activity they observe around the cooperative's substations and other facilities. VEA asked that reports of such activity, or about anyone tampering with VEA electrical meters installed at homes and businesses in the co-op's service area in an attempt to steal power, may be called in to VEA or through the 911 system.

Sheriff Tony DeMeo stressed that since Nevada enacted its own homeland security laws, vandalizing a utility line amounts to class A felony domestic terrorism, a charge that allows for sentencing of up to life in prison for a perpetrator and up to 50 years along with a fine for anyone who assists.

DeMeo said anyone who damages a power line is putting lives and safety in jeopardy.