Precious Metal Thieves Getting Out Of Control After Deadly Accident

A copper thief who cut through traffic-signal wiring at a northeast Portland interchange played a role in a Dec. 11 crash that killed a motorcyclist, highlighting how metal theft can turn critical infrastructure into deadly hazards, police say.

Portland Police reported that someone sliced wires in an underground transfer box controlling the lights at Northeast Airport Way and the Interstate 205 interchange. The blackout occurred shortly before 52-year-old James Goldsmith rode into the intersection and collided with a turning semi around 6 a.m.

“Some time before the crash, someone cut wires in the transfer box leading to the traffic lights in the intersection,” the bureau said in a news release. “That caused the lights to stop working and is a contributing factor to the crash.”

Investigators said the Freightliner driver had exited I-205 southbound, stopped at the nonfunctioning signal, and began a left turn onto eastbound Airport Way as Goldsmith approached in the right lane without stopping. Other vehicles waiting at the darkened intersection likely blocked their view of each other, police added.

No arrests have been made in connection with the wire theft.

The incident comes amid a nationwide surge in copper theft affecting infrastructure. A survey of internet and phone providers recorded 5,770 theft and vandalism incidents targeting communications cables from June through December 2024 — an average of 27 per day — affecting more than 1.5 million customers.

In North Texas, AT&T reported nearly 8,700 copper thefts this year, resulting in about $76 million in repair costs and outages to 911 and cellular service in parts of Dallas, according to Axios. Copper theft has also been linked to another deadly crash: a Christmas Eve truck accident in St. Paul, Minnesota, that killed a man and his dog after a darkened intersection lost power due to stripped wiring, KSTP reported.

original source