Copper Wire Thefts Disrupt Essential Services Across Eastern Canada

According to available data, copper thefts have surged significantly by over 23% since last year.

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Bell Canada said that a rise in copper theft cases has caused regular outages of critical services, such as internet and 911, in eastern Canada.

Data indicates that since last year, copper thefts have increased by more than 23 percent. Since 2022, more than 2,270 copper theft cases have been reported nationwide. Remarkably, almost 500 of these events were documented, throughout the first six months of this year.

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According to Bell, nearly 88% of all physical security incidents on the company's infrastructure network are now related to copper theft. According to Bell's Chief Technology Officer Mark McDonald, these crimes are potentially fatal since they cause Internet, phone, and even emergency 911 services to be disrupted. According to him, the process of switching from copper to fiber-optic lines is ongoing and not yet finished.

Nearly 63% of all copper thefts occur in the City of Ontario, making it the most severely affected. Windsor, Cambridge, and Hamilton are among the other cities that have reported high rates of theft. Additionally, copper theft instances have been sharply increasing in Quebec and New Brunswick in recent years.

In order to discourage theft events, Bell Canada encouraged the federal government to promptly amend the Criminal Code to impose stiffer penalties.