Burglary to water tower unexplained

By 9:00 a.m. this morning, Flagler County deputies told Historic City News reporters that they were searching for an unknown subject who may have been looking to get high — literally.

City utility workers were performing daily water quality checks this morning at the Palm Coast Parkway water tower, a landmark along Interstate 95, when they discovered that the main entry door had been damaged and forced open.

Water towers are massive structures and like cell phone towers, telephone switching stations and electrical utility sites, they can be hazardous; especially to someone who is not familiar with how everything inside their barbed wire topped security fences operates.

No one was seen on the property, however, a green garden hose was observed to be hanging about 50-feet above the ground and a beer can was found inside the fenced area around the water tower.

Workers were concerned for the safety of anyone who may have burglarized the tower; whether as a prank or something worse. A Flagler County fire helicopter responded for an aerial view of the water tower in case the burglar needed to be evacuated.

Photographs taken from the air revealed that a white shirt was on top of the tower, wrapped around a lightning cable.

The damage to the front entry door and to a lid on an air vent at the top of the tower appears to be the only loss. At this time, nothing has been reported stolen in the incident. The white shirt and beer can were the only evidence items reported.

How the perpetrator got into the tower compound has not been determined.

So, if you know a beer-drinker who’s not afraid of heights, the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office may want to talk to you. Seriously, anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office at (386) 313-4911 or Crimestoppers at 1-888-277-TIPS (8477).

Photo credits: © 2011 Historic City News contributed photograph by FCSO