Thieves hit fairgrounds

By Dean Shipley

Staff Writer

William Womack sat on the tongue of a concession trailer Thursday at the Madison County fairgrounds. Smoking a cigarette he was trying to make some sense of the theft from his and his girlfriend’s concession trailer they park there. Sitting out in the open, they are targets, and apparently easy ones, for metal thieves.

Not only did the thieves carry off five heavy electrical cables — of up to 150 feet in length — and a very long water hose, but they also robbed them of their opportunity to work this weekend.

“This is our livelihood,” Womack said.

William Womack shows how thieves apparently lifted the concession trailer awning to gain access and allegedly steal power cables. The apparent theft was discovered Thursday. Five cables were taken at a value estimated at $9,500.

That livelihood took a sucker punch to the pocketbook, especially in light of traveling to Sunbury for an arts festival, where they were to sell French fries, cotton candy and other festival food favorites.

“These were supposed to be outta here,” he said gesturing at the two trailers close by.

Womack and Shelah Otterbacher carry insurance on their five trailing vehicles, four concession stands and a storage trailer. Eventually the insurance company will issue them a check. In the meantime, they will have to dig deeply into their savings to replace the stolen “lead-ins.” Womack said the cables cost $12 per foot.

For all five power cables, the estimated loss, according to the sheriff’s office report, is $9,500.

It’s the second time in two years cables have been stolen from the pair. Last year the theft occurred in May.

“The thief I understand,” Womack said. “But you don’t know why.”

He theorized the thief steals to support a family, a drug habit, no job, in debt and trying to catch up.

Still the cables are gone, possibly to a salvage yard, where Womack thinks for the lot, they were given $300, a fraction of their replacement value. Womack said he would pay that much to get them back.

Another theft occurred a few days before to a recreational vehicle, which is also parked there.

Estimated loss in that theft, to an RV owned by Roy Johnson of London, is $1,500.

David Gallimore, building and grounds committee chair for the agricultural society, said outside parking on the grounds is done at the owner’s risk.