Tamaqua police caught two men red handed in an empty home in the South Ward early Wednesday morning.

While the men were soaking wet, with water spurting out on the basement floor, and numerous copper pipes stacked on that floor, one of the suspects, Mark K. Scheitrum told police, "They were only looking around.An alert resident of the neighborhood heard unexplained noises around 4:19 a.m. and called police to report a possible break-in.When Patrolman Thomas Rogers arrived at the Van Gelder Street home, he heard voices and banging, and what appeared to be a beam from a flashlight coming from the basement.He called for back up and Cpl. Dwayne Hacker arrived within minutes.While waiting for further back up, unsure of how many suspects were in the vacant house, the basement door opened and two men appeared. One was wearing a camouflage mask, beanie and headlamp.The other was wearing a black bandanna over his mouth and nose as well as a beanie. Their clothing was visibly wet.Scheitrum, 28, and Casey Marshall, 19, of 507 Laurel Lane, Tamaqua, were both carrying tools, either in their pockets or strapped to their legs. Those tools included metal cutters, flashlights, pliers, electrical tape, a tape measure, a hacksaw, utility knives, allen wrenches, side cutters, a chisel, gloves and a Leatherman super tool. Scheitrum had a chisel in his pocket.Once the men were handcuffed and placed in squad cars, the officers entered the basement, where they found most of the copper piping had been cut and was stacked in a pile on the floor, next to a hacksaw and black duffel bag. Several inches of water covered the floor and the Tamaqua Water Department was called to come and shut off the water as the main and meter had also been removed.The men were arraigned before District Judge Stephen Bayer, of Tamaqua, later Wednesday morning on charges of burglary, criminal trespass, theft by unlawful taking, criminal mischief and possession of instruments of crime. Bail was set at $50,000 straight cash, sending both men to the Schuylkill County Prison in Pottsville.