The Northern Territory is facing an increase in copper wire theft that is disrupting the telecommunications network, with residents left without phone or internet connection and unable to make emergency calls.
Telstra says almost 40km of copper wire has been stolen in the NT over the past 18 months with Northern Territory Police recently announcing they were investigating the alleged theft of reels of copper cables from the State’s Power and Water authority.
The Northern Territory has experienced hundreds of thousands of dollars damage in the past 12 months, pushing the NT government to consider mirroring laws introduced by Victoria that bans cash for scrap metal.