400 iron gratings stolen from reservoir
Thieves have stripped more than 400 iron gratings from a new reservoir in Yuen Long, with officials suspecting they have been sold as scrap metal.
Two employees of the Water Supplies Department yesterday morning found 433 drain covers were missing from the Tan Kwai Tsuen South Service Reservoir, in Tan Kwai Tsuen Road.
The cast iron gratings cost $200 each and officials believe they have been sold to mainland scrap metal merchants for about $20.
The gratings were stolen from water channels outside the main block of the service reservoir and accounted for 40 per cent of the site's covers, a spokeswoman for the Water Supplies Department said.
'It is the first time such a large quantity of cast-iron gratings has been stolen from our department-managed areas,' she said.
The spokeswoman said the department would look into security measures and make improvements if necessary.
The new service reservoir covers about 200,000 sq m and is due to start operating this month.
Police said it was not known when the drain covers were stolen because no one worked at the site. It was last checked on April 16.
Officers believe intruders broke through the padlock of the site's main gate and escaped with the drain covers in a delivery vehicle.
Last year, cast iron fetched about 90 cents a kg, but prices have risen this year by between 70 and 80 per cent.
Police have warned marine dealers against trading in drain covers and gratings after thefts were reported from parks, public housing estates and open MTR stations.
In February, 96 drain covers were stolen from a park at the junction of Jordan Road and Canton Road in Yau Ma Tei.
Last year, more than 200 drain covers were stolen from public housing estates.
