Ethernet over Copper Carriers Hit by Copper Thieves

In one of our earlier blogs we addressed the various benefits of employing Ethernet over Copper (EoC) services. Aside from providing more bandwidth for your dollar, Ethernet over Copper offers easier management via greater visibility into the network, and are much simpler to deploy and provision than legacy services. Moreover, when compared to a T1 line, the install time of an EoC circuit is significantly faster.

However as more businesses discover the many benefits of EoC services, causing its popularity to grow, carriers are reporting they are being hit time and again by copper thieves.

In one of the more recent cases, Windstream Communications, who services both residential and business customers, reported $25,000 worth of cable stolen from a location in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. The theft interrupted landline and wireless calls, as well as broadband access and communications to emergency services for hundreds of customers.

Scott Morris, a spokesman for the carrier stated that Windstream is offering a $25,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the copper thief/thieves in Oklahoma. The carrier is also offering the same reward for information leading to arrests and convictions in any thefts that take place its additional territories. While Morris was unable to say how many thefts the carrier has endured, he did note that it as a “significant problem across [Windstream’s] footprint".

Just a few weeks before that, AT&T reported that around 300 feet of copper lines were stolen in Fresno, California. The provider is now working with the local Sheriff’s department to track down and catch the criminals. Fresno is just one of the many central California cities that are being targeted by copper thieves; according to reports, at least one specific street in town has been the target of copper thieves more than 6 times. In some instances, the telephone poles have fallen down during the act.

Copper thieves pose a great danger to not only themselves while committing the crime, as many of the telephone poles are in close proximity to active power lines, but they also pose a great danger to the public, because by bringing service down they impede a customer’s ability to call for help in the event of an emergency. Add to that the logistical and financial nightmare they create for carriers, and it’s no surprise why many are now offering large rewards for any witnesses that offer tips leading to a copper thief’s conviction.

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