Landline services affected after 1km of cable stolen

Hundreds of people have had landline phone services disrupted after about 1km (0.62 miles) of cable was stolen in a village in Leicestershire.

Openreach said the theft on Anstey Lane in Thurcaston was reported to its engineering team on 14 October.

According to the provider, about 200 customers were impacted by the theft, with services due to be restored "by the end of the week, with some customers reconnected before then".

A spokesperson said the company was "extremely disappointed" that residents in Thurcaston had been affected by the theft of copper and fibre cable.

"Around a kilometre of cable served from our Beaumont Exchange was stolen, affecting services for hundreds of customers," they added.

"Incidents like this can leave people unable to get online, make calls or access vital services, while also putting vulnerable people at greater risk.

"In this case, although phone services may be disrupted, many customers should still be able to use their broadband service and make calls over the internet."

The spokesperson added: "Our engineers are working as quickly and safely as possible to repair the damage and restore service.

"Thefts on this scale require extensive reconstruction work and repairs are likely to take several days."

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