It looks like the Grinch got an early start this year: Nearly $400,000 worth of snow fencing along a state highway in the White Mountains has been stolen, and police are asking for help finding the culprits.
Our bosses at the Arizona Department of Transportation report that more than 100 snow-fence panels have disappeared from State Route 273 between State Route 260 and Sunrise Park Resort. The panels went missing between mileposts 377 and 380, and ADOT believes they were stolen at night.
The panels are made of aluminum and are designed to prevent snow from drifting across the road. That, in turn, helps ADOT keep the road open during snowstorms.
Because aluminum is relatively valuable, the fence panels could be headed for scrapyards in the Phoenix area or elsewhere in Arizona. The Department of Public Safety is conducting a criminal investigation into the thefts; if you have any information, call 800-782-7463. You can give information anonymously.
(Photo: A snow fence along State Route 273 in the White Mountains. | Courtesy of ADOT)