Theft of dozens of Vancouver firefighting connection points prompt major safety concern
Credit to Author: Stephanie Ip| Date: Thu, 05 Sep 2019 16:02:30 +0000
Vancouver police are searching for thieves who’ve allegedly stolen dozens of firefighting connection points, putting hundreds of building occupants at risk in case of a fire.
According to police, more than 60 cases of similar thefts have been reported across downtown Vancouver and the Downtown Eastside.
In each case, the metal standpipe connection, which is used by firefighters to feed water from a hydrant to the upper floors of a building during a fire, appear to have been yanked from the exterior wall of the building, leaving occupants vulnerable during a fire.
It’s believed thieves are targeting the components for the metal, which can be resold.
This handout image provided by Vancouver police shows one of dozens of connection points that had metal components stolen.
“Vancouver Fire Rescue Services is deeply concerned about the theft of metal fire department connections (FDC’s) from buildings,” said Vancouver Fire Rescue’s Capt. Jonathan Gormick. “The illegal removal of these puts occupants of the building at high risk.”
Sgt. Aaron Roed with the Vancouver police said there may be more thefts that have not been noticed and yet to be reported.
“We encourage anyone who observes a missing connector to call us so we can investigate,” said Roed.
Building managers and occupants are asked to check their standpipe connections and call police if any metal fittings are missing.
Anyone with information about the thefts is asked to contact police at 604-717-0610 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.