TULARE COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) — Farmers across the nation now have a new option for alarm systems to deter copper wire thieves.<\/p>\n
Criminals may now think twice before committing copper wire theft.<\/p>\n
It’s thanks to an innovative alarm system, Farmblox CopRLock.<\/p>\n
The security system was created by local Ag Crimes Expert, Bobby Rader.<\/p>\n
It alerts farm owners and authorities when a panel or fence is being broken into.<\/p>\n
“I spent 16 years leading the most advanced ag unit in the nation and have dealt with thousands of these cases. Something more had to be done. I don’t want these criminals to get away with this. I don’t want the farmer to repair sites. They should not have to do this,” says Rader.<\/p>\n
A potential thief walked up to a water pump panel, looked up at the security system and walked away, likely preventing the farmer from having to spend thousands of dollars in repairs.<\/p>\n
“I can be alerted on a phone app on my phone to at least get out here, check it and know what happened, and maybe not have to wait until it’s actually time to irrigate to find out that it won’t work,” says Dwayne Spalding, who is a fifth-generation farmer in Tulare County.<\/p>\n
He estimates copper wire thieves have stolen over a quarter of a million dollars from his family farm over the years.<\/p>\n
“Copper wire theft has been increasingly bad for us. We’ve found wire theft, fixed it and then we get hit again in the same places,” explains Dwayne.<\/p>\n
The most recent crime happened just a few months ago.<\/p>\n
Replacing and repairing the wire on the water pumps has cost Dwayne thousands of dollars.<\/p>\n
Plus, not having access to water for even a few days can harm production.<\/p>\n
“Especially in the peak summertime. We need the water to maintain the size, so it will affect the growth of the fruit, which at the end of the year affects your bottom line,” mentions Dwayne.<\/p>\n
This past weekend, Dwayne had the Farmblox CopRLock security system installed in hopes it deters thieves from stealing his copper wire again.<\/p>\n
Rader says it has already prevented multiple crimes.<\/p>\n
“My 16 years of AG crimes experience tells me everything that is wrong with copper wire thefts; the Farmblox CopRLock has changed it,” mentions Rader.<\/p>\n
Farmers share that the Farmblox CopRLock security system has cost them a fraction of what they have spent repairing the damage to their properties.<\/p>\n
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