SAN ANTONIO – A medical clinic in a West Side shopping center lost power for hours Saturday, jeopardizing its refrigerated medications and vaccines. Power was lost because suspects allegedly cut electrical lines to steal copper.
The shopping center is located on the corner of South Zarzamora and West Commerce. All businesses were without power until about 2:30 in the afternoon.
Regional Director of Cano Health Rafael Pena said he found out about the power around 9 a.m. For him, being without power lead to a much larger issue than not being able to make transactions.
“I have medications in my refrigerators, I have vaccines -- not only flu but even Covid vaccines. I needed to make sure those were secure and safe and we actually loaded those up into an ice chest and transported them to another clinic so that didn’t compromise the integrity of the vaccines,” said Pena.
Pena believes the suspects used a dumpster to stay out of sight of his security cameras. They cut through a chain linked fence and stripped the copper off electrical wires.
Crime in the area isn’t new for Pena. He told us he’s had his work vans and building vandalized with graffiti. One man even relieved himself on his front door in the overnight hours. This most recent crime isn’t the first of its type either.
“Three weeks ago they came and cut that box and so my camera caught them. They brought a ladder. Believe it or not they had a ladder,” Pena said.
Pena has reached out to SAPD and the District 5 Councilwoman to see if they can add patrols to the area. As for the suspects, we are still waiting to hear back from police.