Around 2 a.m. on March 13, Frank Trout’s son was walking home from his boxing club when a car struck him near Richmond Street and Indiana Avenue. The driver fled the scene, so Trout turned to security footage for answers. But the street was pitch dark.
“[The driver] didn’t have no headlights on, so the tag wasn’t lit up, and the street lights weren’t lit up,” Trout said. “We could get no report, nothing. He needs four surgeries on his heel. He’ll never walk right again.”
The hit-and-run is one of many incidents residents say underscore a growing problem in Port Richmond: streetlights left broken or missing for months, plunging blocks into darkness. With no clear timeline for full repairs, many say the lack of lighting is putting their safety—and faith in the city—at risk.
According to the city’s 311 Service and Information Requests data, at least 75 streetlight outages have been reported along Richmond Street between October 2024 and April 2025.
So far this year, streetlight outages have outpaced all other categories of 311 complaints for Richmond Street—at least tripling reports of sanitation violations, illegal dumping, abandoned vehicles and encampments.
Most of the reports came from the 2900 to 3100 blocks, with others stretching from the 2700 to 3600 blocks and nearby side streets.
Doris Lynch, co-founder and president of the Port Richmond Neighborhood Action group, said she first contacted Councilmember Mark Squilla’s office in January after hearing repeated complaints from neighbors. She said she received a reply Jan. 22 indicating that new lights had been ordered, but when she followed up Jan. 31, she never heard back.
“It’s just bad,” Lynch said. “I have neighbors that are just so fed up with everything in the neighborhood.”
A spokesperson for Squilla’s office said the outages stem from widespread copper wire theft at the base of light poles—a problem city officials say has affected neighborhoods across Philadelphia.
Since January, the city has received over 2,600 streetlight outage reports, according to city data.
The Streets Department confirmed that copper theft has also affected lighting systems maintained by PennDOT and Philadelphia Parks and Recreation.
“The Department of Streets can confirm the outages along Richmond Street are due to copper theft along the entire corridor,” wrote a department spokesperson in an emailed statement.
In response, the department said it is installing vandal-proof bolts and hand hole covers and expanding anti-theft monitoring through its lighting management system. Officials are also adding CCTV systems and working with the Philadelphia Police Department on enforcement.
“We expect to have these lights operational within the next two months,” the spokesperson said. “Longer term, we are working on a multifaceted approach with new technology and enforcement to protect the same lighting systems we are repairing.”
Squilla’s office said most of the lights on the 2900 to 3100 blocks of Richmond Street were fixed in late March, but as of April 11, outages remained near Richmond and Indiana Avenue, Richmond and Ann streets, and Richmond and Westmoreland streets.
Lynch and other residents worry the outages have contributed to some recent crimes in the area, including car break-ins and thefts.
As a precaution, Richard Bennett, who lives on Richmond Street near Wheatsheaf Lane, said he avoids walking certain streets after dark—especially the underpass near the bridge.
“I’ve been there at night and it is so dark underneath the bridge … if you’re there, you can’t see your hand in front of your face,” Bennett said. “I just really feel bad for the people, the residents, that have to live there and do that. It’s not safe.”
Lynch said some neighbors are afraid to leave their homes at night, and at least two have told her they plan to move out of the neighborhood.
Besides calling 311 and contacting elected officials, Lynch said residents feel out of options.
“Everyone’s frustrated,” she said. “Because they do what they feel they’re expected to do and get no results.”
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