Call before you dig!

[Jean in Newcastle]

We lost phone service yesterday. There was a hum on the line, then a loud squeal and then nothing.

 

We had internet but it was spotty. This morning it got more and more spotty until it went out with a bang.

 

I spent 45 min. last night following the phone company's instructions for determining if the short was in our home or outside with the phone company equipment. It was outside.

 

Today I found out from two trucks of technicians working on our street that our neighbors were digging and hit phone lines. They had scraped them, allowing the elements to slowly short them out.

 

So call before you dig!

[lisamarie]

Someone did this to my mom's line. Every time it rains the phone goes out. And yet ATT cannot figure out the problem.:glare:

[Renthead Mommy]

On the afternoon of the night of the season finale of my husband's favorite sci-fi show of the time, I decided to transplant some little plant. We had a huge yard, and it was filled with trees. We had a huge 'natural area' in the center of the backyard. I moved this little bush/shrub thing out of the way, into the center of the natural area. I dug in and was having to cut through various tree roots.

 

Unfortunately, one of those 'roots' wasn't a root. Turns out it was the cable line. And 'calling before I dug' wouldn't have done me any good. The cable line is basically only an inch or two down.

 

After all the sputtering and the vein in his head popping out, he eventually calmed down. And I had already called a friend and was having her tape it for him. We weren't going to be home that night to watch it anyway!