UPDATE (9 a.m. Tuesday): Police and Rogers say the damage estimate to the fibre optic cables is $50,000.
Incident happened near Kortright Road and Hanlon Expressway.
"While the technician was on scene he observed a ladder on the ground and saw a male carrying a tool described as a long pole with a saw on the end. The male fled when he saw the technician, leaving the ladder behind," says the Tuesday police report.
The technician explained there was a section of cable removed but it would have no scrap value as it contained only fibre optic bundles which are or no value once they are cut.
*****************************
Rogers says vandals trying to steal copper wire were to blame for 2,000 customers being without cable, phone and internet services in Guelph Monday afternoon.
"Across the industry, there has been a troubling rise in vandalism and attempted copper theft to network infrastructure, impacting services for Canadians. Beyond being a significant inconvenience for our customers, these acts can have a serious impact on public safety," said a Rogers spokesperson via email Monday evening.
"Currently in Guelph, repairs have started on the vandalized aerial fibres, and we expect customers to start coming back online later this evening. Our crews will continue with repairs throughout the night with full restoration expected by noon tomorrow."
Rogers said over 300 metres of aerial fibre was cut and damaged by vandals in an attempt to steal copper wire.
Rogers has notified police.
"Due to this act of vandalism, residential services for around 2,000 customers in Guelph were impacted. Technicians have started the fibre splicing repair work and will be working overnight given the complexity and length of the cut."
Rogers said it has experienced a four-to-five times increase in outages due to vandalism since 2022.
