WDEF News 12

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Thieves target a dangerous source of copper in Dalton. Gas Incrporated tells fire officials bandits boosted copper from at least three gas tanks this week.

The latest try kept Dalton police and fire crews busy this morning.

They evacuated a business and closed a block of Callahan Road for a while.Charlie Harrison, "Our bedroom is right there so all that stuff the air conditioning pulled all that stuff right in on us."

Harrison and his neighbors on Callahan Road got a rude awakening early Wednesday morning...when a gas tank across the street sprung a leak.

Gary  Baggett, Dalton Fire Department, "Our first arriving unit had a vapor cloud at the tank which indicated that we did have product leaking from it."

Dalton Fire Department crews capped off the leak and found the gas line had been cut.

Baggett says, "There was only one logical reason for it and that was for someone to they attempted to steal the copper."

Captain Gary Baggett says it wasn't a smart move.

"LP gas is extremely flammable. Doesn't take a lot to ignite it," Baggett says, and put many lives on the line.

"Had that person been using some type of tool that would have caused a spark or had he been smoking he'd probably be very severely burned right now or even deceased," he says."They were stealing the copper off the tank?" Harrison exclaims, "My goodness."

It's hard for Harrison to believe.

"That's ridiculous. Anybody'd do such a thing, endangered so many people's lives here," he says.

He's thankful he and his neighbors didn't get hurt.

"Just give us some headaches," he says.

The theft prompts a warning from Captain Baggett.

"If you've got copper out there be aware that there are people out there that are going to take that and they really don't they don't have a lot of regard for their safety or yours so pay attention secure what you can and look out."

Authorities say the copper the crooks tried to steal was around four feet long and as wide as a pinkie...which would have been a small gain.

Meanwhile the owner of the tank paid 23 hundred dollars to refill it.

If you have any information on the theft call Dalton Police.

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