MOTORISTS and pedestrians have been warned not to fall foul of thieves who are stealing manhole covers and selling them for scrap.

So far, about 90 of the metal safety covers have been stolen from towns and villages in south-west Durham over the past three weeks.

Last night, Durham County Council estimated that it would cost about £15,000 to replace the covers, which have a scrap value of only a few pounds.

The authority has warned that the thefts are effectively leaving booby traps for unsuspecting motorists and pedestrians who could be seriously injured if they fail to notice that the covers are missing.

Roger Elphick, head of highway management at the council, said: "It is difficult to understand the mentality of someone who is prepared to risk people's lives for the sake of gaining a few pounds in the run-up to Christmas. It is totally irresponsible.

"People could step off the pavement and seriously injure themselves or, similarly, a motorist or cyclist could drop a wheel in the exposed gully causing danger to themselves or other road users, not to mention the potential damage to their vehicle.''

Mr Elphick also said that the cost to the taxpayer far outweighed how much someone would get for scrap for the manhole covers and meant that there was now less money to carry out other vital highway maintenance work.

The areas affected by the thefts are Bishop Auckland, Chilton, Ferryhill, Fishburn, Spennymoor, Shildon, St Helen Auckland and Witton Park.

Thieves have also targeted road signs on isolated roads in Upper Teesdale and Weardale.

Numerous road signs have recently been stolen from locations in Teesdale and Weardale and Inspector Kevin Tuck, of Barnard Castle police, has said thieves are not thinking of the possible consequences of their actions when they commit the theft, especially as many of the signs are worthless.

The thieves' haul has included directional signs as well as chevrons and warning signs, with an estimated value of £5,000.

Thieves have cut through fixing bolts to remove them from signposts leaving motorists unaware of possible dangers.

Twelve of the signs have been taken from Teesdale, in an area stretching from Harwood to the Cumbrian border, and another 12 have been taken from Upper Weardale.

Insp Tuck said: "This is a very dangerous and callous crime to commit for the sake of scrap metal.

"Apart from the inconvenience and monetary value, it is putting people's lives at risk."