Downed cell tower has left many Thorhild County residents without service for weeks
Businesses are scrambling, while families worry about their inability to reach each other or access help during an emergency.
Monique Janice Chartrand, who owns a roofing company, sends her children to stay with their father in the hamlet of Thorhild when she is working out of town.
"Just in case something ever happened — like if one of the kids fell down the stairs, or something like that, and you need to call 911," Chartrand told CBC News Friday.
She recalled how much she relied on her mobile phone during the wildfire evacuation of Fort McMurray, Alta., where she used to live. Residents in parts of Thorhild County, about 85 kilometres northeast of Edmonton, were forced to flee wildfire in May.
"Just imagine trying to get a hold of your loved ones and you're in a panic trying to get all your stuff out of your house," Chartrand said.
Just after 9 a.m. MT on June 14, RCMP say officers responded to a call about the downed cell tower on Range Road 233. All of its copper wiring was stolen.
Investigators believe the vandalism occurred around 5 a.m. that day, when the roughly 150 farmers served by the tower lost service, police say.
Telus customers between Clyde, Alta., and Thorhild County have had wireless services disrupted, a company spokesperson told CBC News via email. They did not specify how many customers have been impacted.
"As a temporary solution, our teams have adjusted nearby antennas to provide as much coverage as possible to the community, though there may be some customers who experience intermittent or no service," the spokesperson said.
"We are working quickly to build a new tower, which we anticipate will be completed in September."
Telus encourages anyone with information about the incident to contact police, they said.
The incident is the second such act of vandalism to affect a Telus tower north of Edmonton in less than three months, the company spokesperson said.
RCMP confirmed to CBC News that, in late March, vandals destroyed another tower near Bruderheim, Alta., a town roughly 45 kilometres northeast of Edmonton and 50 kilometres south of Thorhild County. Although, police said nothing was stolen.
Police said a cut guy wire — a tensioned cable used to stabilize freestanding structures — caused the tower, located off of Highway 15, to collapse.
"We are deeply concerned about the increasing frequency of these acts of vandalism," the Telus spokesperson said.
That tower's rebuild is expected to be finished at the end of the month, they said.
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