Significantly increased real-time security cameras at Ergon Energy’s Toowoomba and surrounding depots have helped police catch potential thieves red-handed.
The hapless crooks who’d been trying to get their hands on Ergon equipment were unaware every move they were making was being watched live by the companies’ security officers via state-of-the-art high-definition cameras and police were being called.
The footage shows the intruders attempting to steal equipment one moment and within minutes police officers with K9s are in pursuit to make the arrest.
Ergon and Energex’s Manager Corporate Security Justin Morghem said the stepped-up security in the companies’ depots, worksites and on infrastructure were necessary after a spate of break-ins and acts of vandalism occurred around Queensland. “You’d think the last thing anyone would want to vandalise or break into – for their own safety – would be an area known to contain high voltage electricity,” Mr Morghem said.
“Recently our security team have caught people attempting to break into substations that can have equipment energised at up to 132,000 volts and have damaged equipment connected to the live
network on power poles and transformers.
“However, now they’re under heavy video surveillance in many cases we have been able to direct police to the offender in minutes and have been arrested on site or we have been able to provide
very high resolution images of their faces and the vehicles the intruders used.
“While a number of these crazy crooks have been injured, a few of them have been lucky they didn’t end up dead and this security is about saving them from themselves and keeping others in the
community safe.”
Mr Morghem also warned potential offenders the latest cameras are not always as obvious as previous generations of ones saying Ergon and Energex have invested in many concealed devices.
“With advances in technology has come the ability to integrate cameras into our buildings, poles and other equipment making them undetectable,” Mr Morghem said.
“So any potential thief looking to illegally enter one our facilities won’t know where to look for cameras but they can rest assured our security team will be looking directly at them.”
Submitted by:
Danny Donald
Senior Corporate Communications Advisor
Energex/Ergon
Energex | Ergon Energy
26 Reddacliff Street,
Newstead QLD 4006
