Pocono News Section

Dozens of Tires Slashed in Hazleton

Dozens of Tires Slashed in Hazleton - Thursday, February 12, 2009 at 4:08PM EST

Reported by: Kyla Campbell
Thursday, Feb 12, 2009 @ 04:08pm EST
HAZLETON, LUZERNE COUNTY -- Donuts were a common scene in Hazleton Thursday morning. We're not talking about the food, but rather spare tires. Dozens of people woke up to find their tires slashed.

"I came out to take my child to school at 8:30 this morning and had a flat tire," said Fred Savadge, who had to keep his daughter home from school. "It's frustrating when you have the day planned and everything you do depends on that vehicle, but someone decided to give you a flat."

Savadge wasn't alone. Dozens of people living in the north end of the city called police and a towing company after seeing the damage.

"The phone rang, and she couldn't believe it," said Raphael Vantine. "My mother's doctor lives up the street and called to say a lot of people on Laurel Street had their tires sliced open."

Not only was Vantine's mom's car targeted, but so was her own. Both of them had a donut put on until they could straighten things out with their insurance companies. Vantine has to wait to get back to Delaware County until her car is fixed, but she's keeping her cool.

"I have a ride for now," she joked. "We'll just ride around on my mother's donut."

Zenier's Automotive received about 30 calls for flat tires.

"At one point, they just started to flood in, and it became difficult to keep up," said Bill Buggy, owner of Zenier's, who brought in extra workers to help out. "At one point we had seven people out getting them done."

He says the cost of getting a tire replaced is at least $100. Savadge is grateful his insurance covers his loss, which is about $250.

"Now they're out the money, out the time, some people lost a day's worth of work over it," added Buggy.

Police are collecting information from people whose tires were slashed overnight. If caught, the person responsible could face dozens of criminal mischief charges.