Driver raises concern after making disturbing discovery in local mall parking garage: ‘Luckily nobody got hurt’

While the crusade against electric vehicle charging stations is nothing new, some vandalism tactics certainly are.

In a Reddit forum for Orange County, an EV driver questioned the motives behind EV charging station sabotage.

At MainPlace Mall in Santa Ana, the driver came across two chargers with broken handles.

“A 3rd one was placed inside a tub of water,” the original wrote, perplexed.

Luckily, another driver was already taking it out by the time the OP was getting out of their car. All three chargers were in perfect condition only days prior, creating frustration and wonder.

“Why go through the hassle of damaging a business property?” they questioned in the caption. They later added in the comments: “Luckily nobody got hurt.”

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The widespread frequency of vandalism against EVs and charging stations has made reliability a concerning factor, and it is a reason why many people are hesitant to make the switch. It’s unfortunate, considering all of the personal and environmental benefits that come with owning an EV, including monetary savings, tax credits, and a reduced carbon footprint. 

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, while EV production and battery charging do create pollution, EVs have zero tailpipe emissions. So, air pollution contributions associated with owning an EV are still less than the pollution from traditional gas-fueled cars powered by dirty energy. A typical passenger gas vehicle releases over 10,000 pounds of carbon pollution per year.

The mining of minerals for EV batteries is another argument consistently brought up; however, research shows that the pollution is significantly less than that for dirty energy sources being dug up every year. Not to mention that dirty mining is necessary to continue to fuel dirty technology, while clean energy mining is a one-time initial cost.

When debating the transition to an EV, consider the monetary savings, which are even higher for those who have or plan to get home solar. It will make charging your vehicle that much easier, on top of the reduced utility bills with solar. EnergySage is a great source to explore solar options and compare quotes from vetted installers.

The post summoned quite the conversation, gathering everything from problem-solving to pointed fingers and political perspectives on the polarization of EVs.

“Tesla should install one of their little cameras on all of their chargers,” one comment wisely suggested.

“Please don’t hurt my electric car. It did nothing wrong,” another wrote.

“Why vandalize anything?” a third Redditor simply asked.

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