It was pretty common for thieves to break into our equipment at work. With rail equipment you cant just park anywhere or take the equipment home with you. The sidings we had to use where usually sidings of old factories that had closed and the tracks grown up with weeds, and usually in the middle of nowhere. Kids like to discharge fire extinguishers, break out windows and lights. In Lexington NC I had a siding I like to use when we where in the area. Police station just up the street in plain site. One morning we got to work and the machines had been broken into. They broke out a door window and stole one of those Lowes $70 socket sets. They left the big tool box full of the big tools. Boss man took a fit, the window they broke cost more than the tools they stole. Window got fixed, and tool kit replaced and a week later thieves broke into the equipment again. This time they left the cheap socket set and took the big tool box, and of course broke out the same door window again. Bossman had a real fit and told me that from now on to put all the tools in the truck at night. Tools where replaced, window replaced, next week at the motel, went out side to get in the truck and truck was gone. I thought the boss was going to blow a gasket. Well company gave me a rental truck for temporary use and I told the boss I was going to need to buy new tools, again. The new tools I had just bought where all in the stolen truck. We got the truck back a day later, crashed beyond fixing, but the tools where still in the tool box. They did steal my rechargable flash light and the company radio. You cant stop a real thief, you can only keep a honest man honest with locks and chains.
