Copper thefts turned these upscale L.A. streets pitch dark. Frustrated residents are fighting back

"It's been months since a swath of Hancock Park lost its streetlights - and it'll be several more long months of what residents say are "pitch black" streets and roaming burglars before there's a fix. So neighbors have been improvising. Last fall, copper thieves plundered about a dozen public streetlights over three city blocks, leaving their neighborhood in the dark. A walk down Orange Drive feels treacherous - like "something out of the 'Twilight Zone'" - one resident said."

"To make matters worse, repair times could be further delayed after looters cleaned out a city storage yard housing a large amount of replacement wire, L.A. Police Department Senior Lead Officer Harris Cho said at a recent meeting of the Wilshire Neighborhood Council. "The actual warehouse that has all of the types of cables and wires that we need to fix these lights ... was broken into and all of that was stolen," said Sixto Sicilia, of the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council."

Copper thieves plundered about a dozen public streetlights across three city blocks in Hancock Park, leaving streets in near-total darkness and prompting residents to call the city in October. The city's Public Works Department quoted a nine-month repair timeline, which could lengthen after looters stole replacement wire from a city storage yard. Homeowners pooled money to attach makeshift solar-powered lamps to disabled lightposts, but visibility remains poor and residents report increased car thefts and break-ins. Similar wire thefts left the 6th Street Bridge in shadows and contributed to armed assaults in Pico Union; stolen infrastructure can also hinder 911 response.

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