NEWS: Did Forth Ports check behind the couch?

By Mark McLaughlin
Edinburgh Evening News
June 6, 2008

THE Royal Yacht Britannia has become the latest victim of the soaring trade in stolen scrap metal.

Two massive spare propellers for the famous craft were stolen in a raid on a Leith Docks warehouse.

The seven-foot long phosphor bronze propellers, worth more than GBP 7000 each, were taken from a Forth Ports-owned warehouse situated to the south-west of the boat's moorings at Ocean Terminal.

Inspector Steven Gibb, of Lothian and Borders Police divisional intelligence unit, based in St Leonards Street, said the theft was "incredibly ambitious", and highlighted the extreme lengths to which criminals would go to cash in on the metal boom.

He said: "The two 7ft propellers would have required specialist lifting gear, and a flatback or heavy goods truck to lift."

Warehouse bosses reported the theft to police just before 2pm on Tuesday.

A Forth Ports spokesman said: "There was a fire at the warehouse on Thursday, May 29, and fire crews had to break into the warehouse to extinguish the flames.

"An emergency joiner was called to fix the doors to the property, but as with many emergency repairs the integrity of the security is not what it was.

"It is believed the theft was an opportunist attempt by a group of people who realised that the building was unsecured and seized the opportunity. The propellers were redundant parts in the sense that all mechanical machinery has been stripped out of the Britannia as it is no longer an operation vehicle.

"I would have to stress that the Forth Ports compound is an extremely secure compound, and permits are required to gain admission.

"However, while this warehouse was on Forth Ports ground it was not within the secure compound."

A Britannia spokeswoman said various unused spare mechanical parts had been stored in the shed off North Sands Road since the yacht arrived ten years ago.

The theft comes after a bumper month for metal thieves in May, with police recording at least 20 crimes.

It happened just two days after thieves put their lives on the line by breaking into two 11,000V electricity substations outside the Edinburgh International Climbing Arena in Ratho to steal metal cabling worth less than GBP 20.

Thieves got away with just a few yards of cable, which substation owner Scottish Power described as "virtually worthless".

Metal prices have soared in the past five years due to high demand from the booming economies of India and China.

Amongst the thefts reported last month were GBP 4000 worth of cabling stolen from an unmanned building site in West Granton Road on May 6.

There had also been a spate of manhole cover thefts in the Lothians in recent months, as thieves look to cash in on demand.