Originally published at: Wichita man plagued by an insensitive and uncaring AT&T | Boing Boing
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The property owner has had difficulty garnering any media attention to the problem because it is a boring story.
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I wrangled with AT&T for 18th months to get a low-hanging line over my driveway raised. I’m in Texas so the Freedom Polls do not belong to the city at all.
The answer is the State and Local Public Utilities Commission (PUC). Even in Texas!
Research the rules for submitting complaints through the PUC (start with local).
I had to request service, and take copious notes (timestamps, names of people and phone numbers called, summary of conversations, etc). Once the service is requested, the clock starts. At the end of the deadline specified by the PUC, you send all the documentation to them, starting another clock.
If the company doesn’t fix the problem by the second deadline (IIRC it was 30 days), then they are in violation and the PUC is going to come down on them like a ton of bricks, especially if they don’t have a leg to stand on.
Long story short, AT&T fixed the problem.
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Cut the wire and patch the line. They’ll be around soon enough.
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If they don’t care that their fiber runs through his sewer line, then they won’t care if he severs it while replacing said sewer line.
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Rogers Cable is currently running a coax from the neighbour’s, across the garage roof, to our (city’s) tree at the front and then down the block. They had plenty of time before winter to replace the neighbour’s line from the lawn box to his house, but nooooo!
Somehow I doubt their right-of-way covers our garage roof, but I’m not going to cut my neighbour’s internet.
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Apparently here in Canada, Bell has irrevocable easements on the title of approx. 50% of all properties, and can pretty much whatever they want depending upon the wording.
In my case, Bell used my junction box to run a temporary line to my neighbour’s new house - the line was supported by the roof eavestrough of my house and drawn very tight. I could not say “NO”. It wasn’t temporary, and the 1st ice storm in late autumn increased the weight of the line until it ripped my eavestrough off. Bell would not compensate because why would they, but luckily my neighbour did.
Now, Rogers is a different beast altogether. Arrogance without even the technical competence of Bell.
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“Thousands lose internet after sewer line cleaned.”
Not boring anymore.
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Oh, I don’t think it’s boring at all, I was just trying to be punny. Because AT&T bored a hole through his sewer line to install their cable.
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Doh!
I see it now. It’s dad joke territory, I should have seen it right away.
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Territory I can’t seem to navigate out of
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Well, he did keep it underground and away from the bright lights of publicity.
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I might have said it went over your head, but clearly that did not apply here. 
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I awful thing about it is having been a former long-time resident of Wichita, I still remember the caution from the utility companies – “Call before you dig.”
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AT&T very likely used a horizontal boring machine, not a trencher, in order to run the fiber through the sewer line.
They need to update their admonishment! “Call before you bore.”
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And here I thought Wichita was boring enough. /s
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We’re in Dad Joke Territory! Keep the windows wound up tight, the doors locked and don’t make eye contact.
I am a Lineman for the county,
And I’ve just messed up your sewer🎶
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My mom (in Wichita) had to replace her basement carpet in her home after only 20 years, because the ground settled and sheared the main water line from the street. Still, so glad it was the clean water instead of the dirty water.
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Seriously, why did it take six hours and 18 posts to make this reference. You have a man from Wichita and a sewer line. This practically writes itself.
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