A homeowner in Florida had just gotten fiber-powered internet connected to his home and was returning for a lunch break to discover something quite appalling. His new fiber optic cables were cut, and the perpetrators are, he says, a competitor of the internet company he’s using. More specifically, contractors for CenturyLink had “dug a conduit right through my new T-Mobile Fiber Optic line.” That said, this wasn’t the contractors’ first rodeo.
According to GreatGoatsInHistory, the homeowner’s username on Reddit, “the exact same crew cut the cable internet line to my office 2 weeks ago.” Whether it was carelessness or some sort of corporate deliberation is unknown, but one fact is true: OP sadly doesn’t have his luxurious fast wifi anymore, at least until the cables are repaired. In his post on r/mildlyinfuriating, he explained how this team working for CenturyLink had been quite the menace in his neighborhood.
The contractors have been working in the area for weeks; during this time, GreatGoatsInHistory says, “They’ve cut cable lines, power lines (twice that I know of), phone lines, broken fences, cracked a sanitary sewer, and left tred marks and torn sod as far back as 12 feet into yards.” When he confronted them about his severed fiber optic cable, they claimed to have seen the junction box but ignored it, guessing that there wasn’t anything inside. In other words, it was contractor carelessness to a destructive level.
Redditors Claim Contractors Cutting Fiber Lines Isn’t Uncommon
“It’s pretty obvious they are an out-of-town contractor that only cares about getting stuff done quickly,” GreatGoatsInHistory wrote, and it wouldn’t be hard to agree. Countless Redditors chimed in the comments, with several sharing their horror stories of how irresponsible contractors had also cut their fiber lines. Someone claiming to be from Germany says things aren’t much different overseas. “The amount of cheap fiber subcontractors who don’t give a flying care is insane,” a comment read.
“It’s crazy to me that these fiber companies are OK hiring these jokers who make their Fiber brands look absolutely awful,” remarked another commenter. A third person suggested calling the city about the careless contractors, as they are seemingly digging around without properly checking for other utilities. “They are going to get themselves killed and possibly cause thousands of dollars in other damages if/when power goes out,” the Redditor remarked.
Fortunately, T-Mobile had a crew ready in Florida to repair GreatGoatsInHistory’s fiber line to his home. Still, it’s as the one Redditor commented: the fact that this happened at all is a bad look for cable companies in general.
