Eye out for stolen spouting

Water drips from spouting at Tahuna North Intermediate School after thieves removed several...
Water drips from spouting at Tahuna North Intermediate School after thieves removed several copper downpipes on Monday night. Photo by Gerard O'Brien.
Thieves have stolen hundreds of dollars worth of copper downpipes from two Dunedin schools in an act a principal describes as "senseless".

Tahuna Normal Intermediate School and Green Island School reported several downpipes up to 3m long were stolen from buildings on Monday night.

"This is just a senseless act," Tahuna North Intermediate School principal Brent Ward said.

"We arrived today to see water gushing from the empty holes. This is disappointing, as the money we will need for this [repairs] should be going towards library books."

Last month, several metres of copper spouting was stolen from the school.

"The community keeps an eye on these things, and if anyone sees anyone acting suspiciously around schools, they should call the police," Mr Ward said.

The school would replace the downpipes with plastic spouting at its own expense, he said.

Green Island principal Steve Hayward said the school would need to spend hundreds of dollars to install new metal pipes, as the plastic downpipes were not suitable for areas where pupils played sport.

Senior Constable Fred Jansen, of Green Island, said scrap metal dealers had been notified about the theft.

"We are also appealing to the public for any information," he said.

South Dunedin police were reviewing security-camera footage of the Tahuna North Intermediate theft.

Scrap metal dealer Peter Everitt, of Everitt Enterprises in Dunedin, said copper was fetching between $5.50 and $7 a kg, compared with just over $3 a year ago.

"There is a huge demand for copper, which is reflected in the prices," he said.

"The older the copper is, the thicker it is, and it can reach higher prices."

Estimating the value of the latest stolen downpipes was difficult without knowing the weight, he said.

Copper was sent to a foundry in Christchurch, mixed with zinc and converted to brass, or mixed with tin to make bronze, he said.

Scrap-metal dealers kept an eye out for suspicious people trying to sell copper, with dealers required to obtain photo identification from any person they bought scrap metal from, he said.

Last month, copper was stolen from Everitt Enterprises and, when it was offered to another scrap dealer, the police were notified.

"The system is working," Mr Everitt said.

 

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