The theft and vandalism of road name signs throughout Tallahatchie County continues to be a big problem that endangers lives.
District 1 Supervisor Kenneth “Buck” Havens said the green signs with white lettering, bolted either on steel posts or stop signs, are going missing at an alarming rate.
Recently, the Tallahatchie County Road Department replaced signs that had been stolen from a dozen or so rural roads in Havens’ district. Within a week, some of the same ones had been stolen again, he lamented.
“The rest of the districts are just like mine,” Havens noted. “It’s a problem countywide.”
Most of the road signs are now plastic, not metal, and have little value for scrapping. Stolen metal signs are replaced with plastic ones.
The dollars it takes to replace each stolen sign is of concern, but of greater fear is that a life will be endangered by a missing road sign during a time of emergency.
“Many of the ambulance people are not from around here and are not always familiar with our roads. They need these signs to be able to find an address,” Havens noted. “If they miss a turn on a road because of a sign that’s down, that’s wasted time, and a few minutes for a heart attack victim could mean the difference between life and death.”
Traffic signs are government property, and their theft can be punishable by a fine of up to $500 plus jail time.
IN THE PHOTO: Too many county road name signs, like this one at the intersection of Oak Grove and Spring Hill roads, are being stolen in Tallahatchie County. (Photo by Clay McFerrin)
