Road Sign Thefts In Coal County An Expensive Problem

Road sign thefts in Coal County are an ongoing headache for officials in south central Oklahoma.  

County Commissioner Nick Lee is upset.

"It is a big deal it's not a joke," County Commissioner Nick Lee said.

Lee told KXII, the CBS affiliate in Sherman, Texas, people are constantly stealing their road signs and it needs to stop.

"We've been looking trying to keep an eye out because we've been having to replace them, we've got a lot of signs in Coal County," Lee said.

Replacing those stolen signs is adding up.

"Approximately $18.50 for each sign and some of them more and then the time of putting up, labor, very costly to the taxpayers of Coal County," Nick Lee adds.

A few days ago Lee says he got a call from farmer Pete Thomas, who found 31 of the missing signs in his pasture.  Thomas says the signs are important for drivers using Coal County roads.

"Somebody could've got killed there at the intersection," Thomas said.

Commissioner Lee says the county road signs are truly there for emergency responders.

"Going to a location, someone might be having a heart attack, domestic abuse, maybe a house fire; our county road signs is our 911 signs and it's very important to get there in timely manner to maybe save someone's life or save a house," Nick Lee said.

The Coal County Sheriff's office says stealing a road sign is a misdemeanor that can result in a fine, restitution or even jail time.