GREENSBORO -- More than 70 manhole covers have gone missing around Greensboro recently.

Storm water maintenance supervisor Tim Elmore says covers have been stolen before but usually just a few at a time, most likely for a teenage prank.

"Over the 28 years that I've been here, I've never seen this many being gone at one time," he commented.

Elmore thinks they are being sold to scrap metal companies.

"I mean the price of scrap metal has gone up. We've seen it increase just like the price of everything else so we feel pretty confident that they're probably being sold," he explained.

Each one of the manhole covers costs around $60 which means the city has to spend thousands to replace them.

"We're probably now pushing the $5,000 mark and that's just for the materials and it doesn't count our staff time and equipment," Elmore said as he supervised a crew that was replacing covers on Wednesday.

It's also a safety hazard.

"It's an open hole … a lot of the structures, they range anywhere from three or four feet to sometimes 15 or 18 feet deep. So pedestrians could be walking and if they're not careful they could step in one of these holes," he said.

If you notice an open hole you should call the city of Greensboro at 336-373-2489. If you see someone stealing a cover, you should call 911.