US hunters shoot down Google fibre

[PBinWA]

Some bad behavior from the gun community . . .

US hunters shoot down Google fibre - Telco/ISP - Technology - News - iTnews.com.au

Repairers forced to ski in to Oregon back woods.

Google has revealed that aerial fibre links to its data centre in Oregon were "regularly" shot down by hunters, forcing the company to put its cables underground.

The search and advertising giant's network engineering manager Vijay Gill told the AusNOG conference in Sydney last week that people were trying to hit insulators on electricity distribution poles.

The poles also hosted aerially-deployed fibre connected to Google's $US600 million ($A635 million) data centre in the Dalles, a small city on the Columbia River in the US state of Oregon.

"What people do for sport or because they're bored, they try to shoot at the insulators," Gill said.

"I have yet to see them actually hit the insulator, but they regularly shoot down the fibre.

"Every November when hunting season starts invariably we know that the fibre will be shot down, so much so that we are now building an underground path [for it]."

Gill said that on one occasion, a snowstorm and avalanche prevented Google from transporting repairers and gear into the area of the cut.

It usually used a helicopter or a Caterpillar D9 tractor for transport. It improvised by sending three technicians on skis to "repair the fibre that got shot down".

"These guys had to cross country ski for three days," Gill said.

"[One guy] is carrying what is known as a fusion splicing kit on his backpack."

He joked: "These guys had to go in and fix the fibre while facing gunshots

"So [the] internet... [it's] more dangerous than you realise."

Copyright © iTnews.com.au . All rights reserved.

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[twoclones]

The story sounds like it contains more speculation than facts.

No one has been caught but they're known to be hunters...
Insulators haven't been hit but that's what they're shooting at...
They do it because they're bored yet they've never been observed or caught...

I wonder if there's any proof the lines were shot? Personally, my money is on Yahoo stock holders and not hunters

 

[PBinWA]

I bet there are a few guns owned by MSFT employees too.

 

[twoclones]

I bet there are a few guns owned by MSFT employees too.

You may have something there.

I'm surprised the 'reporter' didn't report that if repairmen had to ski in for 3 days, the hunters would have had to do the same. Apparently the terrain is too rough for snowmobiles {but not D9 Caterpillers} and these hunters must be herding the elk back to the truck before shooting one.

 

[trainsktg]

He joked: "These guys had to go in and fix the fibre while facing gunshots."

Oh please.


My guess is: the fiber is fragile and subject to snapping during windy conditions when ice or snow is resting on the cable, so rather than admit they had an initial bad design, they are covering their collective butts by blaming the problem on nebulous 'hunters'.

Keith

 

[phathom]

Definitely a lot of speculation, working for a telecommunications company that has plenty of fiber ran all over the place. We frequently have people messing with it, cutting it, etc. So much as they know exactly what they are doing, what they are going for, and how to damage it to bring down the network.

They are either 1:rival companies' employees or 2:disgruntled former employees.

When media coverage gets to it, they try to claim it was "tweakers, after copper in the lines" All except there is no copper in fiber optic lines. Also they aren't just out there with some cutters trying to take it down, they have done everything from breaking the conduit open with a sledge hammer and then cutting the fiber, to using high intensity torches that superheat the metal conduit that is to protect them, in order to turn it into an oven and damage the fiber that way.

The funny thing is, most of these places it is damaged are very specific, hard to get to places. A lot of them require you to walk miles into the forest, fields, and hack your way through brush and black berry bushes to get to. These acts are very deliberate and not just a casual bunch of drunk hunters blowing off some rounds. They aren't aiming for the insulator, they are purposely trying to cut the fiber to cause financial losses to the company.

This kind of thing happens all the time in the telecommunications industry. It is not hunters I can tell you that. The companies' just don't want to start a bad PR war and start pointing fingers at other companies' saying "abc company" did this, and they don't want to look stupid and say, "ummm I don't know, just happened, I guess" So they put the blame on some random group of people, mainly "tweakers looking for copper" or "random vandals, kids, gangs, etc" this time it happens to be hunters.

 

[PBinWA]

I should probably change my opening comment to :

"Some bad press for the gun community" . . .

 

[wingspar]

A few years ago, a lady that was upset with the cable company cut the cable, and cut service to thousands just minutes before the Super Bowl was to start. There was nothing funny about that at all.

 

[Redcap]

A few years ago, a lady that was upset with the cable company cut the cable, and cut service to thousands just minutes before the Super Bowl was to start. There was nothing funny about that at all.

That is absolutely hilarious!

 

[supergenius]

That is absolutely hilarious!

This

 

[Bad Droid]

Definitely a lot of speculation, working for a telecommunications company that has plenty of fiber ran all over the place. We frequently have people messing with it, cutting it, etc. So much as they know exactly what they are doing, what they are going for, and how to damage it to bring down the network.

They are either 1:rival companies' employees or 2:disgruntled former employees.

When media coverage gets to it, they try to claim it was "tweakers, after copper in the lines" All except there is no copper in fiber optic lines. Also they aren't just out there with some cutters trying to take it down, they have done everything from breaking the conduit open with a sledge hammer and then cutting the fiber, to using high intensity torches that superheat the metal conduit that is to protect them, in order to turn it into an oven and damage the fiber that way.

The funny thing is, most of these places it is damaged are very specific, hard to get to places. A lot of them require you to walk miles into the forest, fields, and hack your way through brush and black berry bushes to get to. These acts are very deliberate and not just a casual bunch of drunk hunters blowing off some rounds. They aren't aiming for the insulator, they are purposely trying to cut the fiber to cause financial losses to the company.

This kind of thing happens all the time in the telecommunications industry. It is not hunters I can tell you that. The companies' just don't want to start a bad PR war and start pointing fingers at other companies' saying "abc company" did this, and they don't want to look stupid and say, "ummm I don't know, just happened, I guess" So they put the blame on some random group of people, mainly "tweakers looking for copper" or "random vandals, kids, gangs, etc" this time it happens to be hunters.

I'm saving your post and placing it in my 2A bookmark file for later arguments. What you wrote here makes a lot more sense than what we might hear from other "sources".

 

[jordanvraptor]

Are there specific lines for Farmville?

 

[The Cheese]

Are there specific lines for Farmville?

lol. Just be sure not to cut the pr0n line or else the S will really HTF and quick.