Vandals managed to topple this cell tower west of Oliver, resulting in extensive damage. Photo contributed
If you have experienced degraded cell phone service in Oliver, you can thank vandals for that.
Telus reports that one of its wireless sites (tower) west of Oliver was critically damaged by one or more vandals, causing wireless service to degrade in some parts of Oliver and the surrounding area.
Telus media relations Liz Sauve said they responded immediately, but the site is only accessible by helicopter and the damage is extensive, requiring specialized equipment to address. “So it will take some time for us to fully restore service. In the meantime we’re working on a temporary solution that will restore some service in the coming days.”
Sauve said a Telus team is “all-hands-on-deck” and working around the clock to restore service as quickly as possible.
Currently, some customers are picking up signals from nearby towers and may not have experienced much change in their service, while others may be experiencing degraded or intermittent service.
“This is an extremely rare situation, and we greatly appreciate our customers patience as we work to fully restore their service.”
Because the damage was caused by vandalism, the local RCMP are involved. Sauve would not say how the vandals actually toppled the tower, or if anything was stolen from the site.
