The tornado that ripped through Raleigh a few weeks ago left much debris and heartbreak for its citizens. It also left a few downed telephone lines, one of which has been lying in the road near my home since the storm struck. I pondered how anyone could find it acceptable for their phone service to be out for over two weeks.
Then I hit upon the answer: no one has landlines anymore.
That copper lying in the street is likely “dead” copper, having long ago beed disconnected in favor of cellphone service or a VoIP connection. AT&T hasn’t been in a hurry to rehang that line because it’s not making any money from it. I wondered how much copper still hanging on those poles is still being used, and if local telephone companies are on a slow march to irrelevance.
Or maybe it’s a quick march.
I’m surprised somebody hasn’t taken the copper for scrap. Around here, even well secured copper is likely to vanish overnight. Homes in the historic district are having problems with their copper downspouts being stolen.
Actually, quite a bit of that was going on, too, Chris. While I was working to help clear the roads the day after the tornado, I got a tip that a certain resident was stealing downed utility wires for the copper. I alerted the cops and the guy was arrested.