Copper wire thefts surge in downtown London with salvage yards told to be on alert [Video]

London police are urging downtown residents, businesses and property owners to be on alert amid an uptick in copper wire thefts in the core over the last several months.

At least 23 incidents of copper wire theft have been reported to police since November, with 21 reports occurring in the downtown, police said Monday in a joint statement with London Hydro and city hall.

“We’ve seen the number of incidents start to tick up in terms of copper theft from live installations,” said Ysni Semsedini, the CEO of London Hydro.

He specified that thieves are primarily targeting the underground network, and on high voltage infrastructure, usually stealing in the overnight hours between two to five in the morning.

“For us, that poses a huge safety risk, both for the people who are stealing the copper and then also for our employees who are having to go in and try to …