Stolen cables leave residents without power
Residents in the area say that the metro needs to find an alternative plan to better secure these boxes from theft.
![](https://images.caxton.co.za/wp-content/uploads/sites/28/2020/02/09srgenpowerjb_00851.jpg)
Electric cables were stolen from an electric utility box on the corner of 8th Street and Second Avenue on Tuesday night.
Resident Daya Reddy says the steel box has been left open, allowing thieves to easily gain access to the cables inside.
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Reddy adds: “The lock does not work and it is left open the whole day and night.
“The metro knows about this problem but they do nothing about it.”
The whole of second avenue was left without power and many businesses suffered as a result.
One shop owner feared that the food in his fridge will go off, which would leave him unable to sell many of his goods and lose business.
Electricians arrived on the scene and said that thieves attach a car battery to the back of the utility box which then activates the electric lock and unlocks the box.
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The electricians demonstrated how this can be done by running an electric cable from a car battery directly to the electric locking mechanism.
Residents in the area say that the metro needs to find an alternative plan to better secure these boxes from theft.
The metro failed to respond to our inquiries in time for publication.