Stolen A/C unit is rude awakening during heat wave - 13 WTHR Indianapolis

With the brutally hot weather, the air conditioning has been running non-stop at many houses including Jeff Stanger's - until Thursday morning.

"I got up and started to get ready and came down the hall and noticed this blank," he said, referring to the thermostat.

Stanger said he went to the garage thinking he'd blown a fuse, but everything was fine until he walked outside.

"I was stunned," Stanger said. "The unit was completely missing."

The freon lines were cut and the condenser lifted from the concrete block.

"It's pretty bold and shocking a criminal was that industrious on a national holiday," he said. "Most of us were taking the day off. They weren't."

Stanger assumes that whomever took the unit means to sell it as scrap metal.

"You wouldn't think they'd get a whole lot out of it, but I guess they thought so," he said.

Stanger has insurance, and he'll get the unit replaced.

"It's a big frustration that really ticked me off but I know there are a lot of people worse off than I am," he said.

Stanger works for the Salvation Army. Given the unusually hot weather, he's been working hard to promote their cooling centers.

The Salvation Army's Eagle Creek site has been an especially popular place for kids and teens to stay cool. Now Stanger is looking for some relief himself.

"I'm pretty upset but I feel more for the folks out there who are really hot and have no solution," he said.

Like many others, he's hoping for cooler days ahead.

A spokesperson for Indianapolis Metro Police said they have seen a slight increase in A/C coil thefts, but mostly from businesses. And it is the metals, not the condensers, they're interested in.