Thieves put motorists lives at risk

10/09/2010 @ 12:41

Thieves targeting roadside drain covers in the Welshpool area are putting local motorists and vehicles at risk and causing damage, the County Council has said.

Up to 14 roadside iron drain covers have been stolen from trunk and county roads in the north of the county in the past weeks.

A spokesperson for Powys County Council said: “In the past few weeks 14 storm drain covers have been stolen from the A458 trunk road near Welshpool and from county roads in the Meifod and Llanfyllin areas.

“The theft apart from being costly for the authority presents a danger to all road users. There is a real risk of motorists driving over an exposed manhole with devastating affect. Apart from the obvious damage to a vehicle an incident would cause, it could result in personal injuries or worse.

“The Council is replacing covers as fast as it can but the danger is that some locations on minor roads are not discovered until it is too late.

“We would urge anyone who sees anything suspicious to get in touch with police and if anyone discovers a missing drain cover they should contact the council service helpdesk on 0845 6027035 01597 827465 immediately,” he added.