Thieves take cables from Grafton substation a year after costly damage

A cable theft at a central Auckland substation has cut power to homes and businesses for hours, with a community trust saying the incident comes about a year after a similar crime caused extensive electrical damage and disruption.

Vector confirmed to the Herald that a cable was stolen from a distribution transformer on Madeira Lane, Grafton, this morning, causing a localised power outage.

“Our crews replaced the cable and power was restored to the area at approximately 2pm,” a Vector spokesperson said.

Kāhui St David’s provided the Herald with footage of an incident last year showing a man forcing open the substation door and leaving with copper cables a short time later.

Paul Baragwanath, director of the Kāhui St David’s charitable trust, said thieves had again targeted the Madeira Lane substation about 8am today.

“The earthing cables, value of $300 or so for scrap, have been stolen. Again,” he said.