Daycare forced to close after air conditioner stripped of copper wiring

A child-care centre on Scurfield Boulevard was forced to close Wednesday after copper wiring from its rooftop air conditioning unit was stolen.

Advantage Child Care Academy made the discovery while conducting its annual inspection of the coolers on May 12.

“They went up to just do the annual general maintenance to get the units ready to go and we got a report saying; ‘you’ve been vandalized,’” said the centre’s owner, Ben Szuuts.

He said there were no concerns during a previous inspection on Feb. 10.

The for-profit daycare centre had no idea the units had been stripped until they were inspected, because the systems continued to function with heat and ventilation.

The facility filed a police report and installed temporary units, but with high temperatures in Winnipeg on Wednesday, the centre closed to ensure the air conditioning was working properly and wouldn’t put children at risk.

Environment Canada issued a heat warning for the city Wednesday as temperatures reached 28 C. Daytime highs are expected in the low to mid-30s the rest of the week and into next week.

Parents received a notice on Tuesday notifying them of the situation and that the centre was installing the temporary coolers. On Wednesday morning, caregivers were forced to make other child-care plans.

Kevin Gordon received the notice at 6:30 a.m. Wednesday and had to scramble to find care for his two children.

”You got to think of the sophistication of these criminals,” Gordon said. “That’s a lot of work.”

The letter sent to parents Tuesday informing them of the theft, viewed by the Free Press, said other businesses on Scurfield had also been targeted.

In April, police arrested 35-year-old Christopher Sawatzky in connection with 14 rooftop HVAC thefts that resulted in approximately $500,000 of damage, including two buildings on Scurfield that caused $35,000 in damage.

Property crime investigators learned Sawatzky had gone to metal scrapyards around Winnipeg at least 28 times to sell stolen metal, police said at the time.

The Winnipeg Police Service did not respond to questions Wednesday about the theft at the child-care centre.

The theft has cost the facility $50,000 in repairs and replacements.

Szuuts said he wants the scrapyards taking in copper wiring to be held accountable, and for the province to better enforce its laws regulating scrap metal.

”If they did, then thieves would have nowhere to take it, so you need to kind of go from the top down here,” he said.

Amid a surge in catalytic converter theft in 2022, Manitoba tightened the Scrap Metal Act, which requires buyers to keep records of transactions involving items made out of precious metals like copper, iron and steel. Reports of catalytic converter thefts in vehicles have since dropped dramatically.

Last year, Wayne Balcaen, MLA for Brandon West and the Tory justice critic, called for a clampdown on scrap metal dealers who buy stolen copper wire.

Justice Minister Matt Wiebe was not made available for an interview Wednesday. An emailed statement from his office said as recently as this week Manitoba Justice met with those affected by scrap metal theft to listen to their experiences and concerns.

nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca