Keighley & District
Warning as lead thefts rise
The partner of a firm is warning people to take precautions after lead thieves caused £10,000 damage to his building.
Richard Hudson, of Stirk Lambert & Co chartered accountants and tax consultants in North Street, Keighley, realised the firm had been a victim of lead theft when he noticed water pouring into the top floor of the building.
He said: "When it started to rain, water came in through the ceiling and went all over the place.
"We are sat with buckets in the office and we have to turn the lights off when it starts raining. We have had to move everything out of the way.
"We are now looking at other ways to improve the security on the roof but there is little we can do about it, it is just one of those things."
Although Stirk Lambert & Co is carrying on with business as usual, it has been the victim of a fast-growing crime.
This week metal plaques positioned outside MP Ann Cryer's office in Devonshire Street, Keighley, have been stolen, and police have recently investigated the theft of car batteries from a waste site.
Inspector Mark Allsop, from Keighley Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: "This has been a problem for a little while now, not just here, but nationally.
"People don't usually find out about lead thefts from roofs until it rains, and then the cost of repairs to the building are often a lot more than what the lead is worth."
Jeremy Goodwin, a buyer for T Holmes and Co in Lawkholme Lane, said the value of lead and other metals had risen markedly in the last 20 years.
He said: "I have been here for 26 years and I have seen lead as low as £150 a tonne, and rise to £12,000 a tonne. Right now it is just over £1,000.
"We sell it to a bigger dealer in Bradford and then it gets exported to countries like China."
1:05pm Friday 2nd May 2008
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