A £10,000 reward has been offered to catch cable thieves who sparked a series of house fires, put lives at risk and left 280 homes without power on one of the coldest days of the year.
Detectives are hunting the vandals who risked their own lives by breaking into an electricity substation in Greenock, Inverclyde.
The damage they caused by stealing nine feet of copper wire, worth only £40, sparked a power surge in the town's Larkfield area.
A family, including two young children, were forced to flee their home shortly before 4am yesterday.
A 28-year-old man, believed to have been the children's father, was treated at the scene after breathing in smoke.
Three other homes were affected by minor fires.
Power supplies to 280 other homes were cut off for most of the day while ScottishPower engineers carried out safety checks.
The energy company has offered £10,000 for anyone with information about the theft that leads to a conviction. Cash rewards are part of the company's recently launched metal theft awareness campaign.
A spokesman said: "The seriousness of the incident highlights just how thoughtless these criminals are.
"We would urge anyone with information to contact the police or call us directly."
Engineers were last night visiting every home affected to make sure there was no damage or further problems could be caused when the power was turned back on.
At one point yesterday there were 280 homes without electricity.
A spokesman said the theft of the cable had caused an "incredible" problem for residents.
He said that, in addition to the efforts of the company's engineers, it also hoped to set up a centre for people to get hot food and warm drinks.
He added: "The cable that was stolen was not worth more than a double-figure sum. The thieves were lucky because there is an 11,000-volt cable in the substation and if they had tried to cut that they would have been electrocuted.
"The theft has caused an incredible amount of trouble and the thieves are lucky to be alive."
Police said the family forced to flee their house due to a fire had faced a "terrifying" ordeal.
Inspector Jennifer Shanks said: "This young family have been extremely lucky that they managed to escape so quickly from their house with two very young children.
"However, with five weeks to go before Christmas, their house has been extensively damaged after a surge at their electricity box.
"This terrifying fire was caused by someone stealing about £40 worth of copper piping from the nearby Burns Square substation.
"Additionally, many other families in the area experienced fires in their homes and damage to their property.
"Around 300 houses have been left without electricity on one of the coldest mornings of the year. Some of these householders will undoubtedly have very young or old people who are vulnerable to the cold."
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