Posted on 04/18/2013 4:32:31 AM PDT by lowbridge
service was restored in the South Bay Wednesday after being disrupted Tuesday when vandals cut underground fiber optic cables south of San Jose.
It was one of two cases of apparent sabotage, according to the Santa Clara County Sheriff.
A transformer at a San Jose PG&E substation was also vandalized, most likely damaged by gunfire.
Sheriff Laurie Smith said both were apparent acts of "sabotage."
The vandal's objective appears to have been "shutting down the system," Smith said at a news conference at the substation Tuesday afternoon. "We don't have a suspect," she said. "It seems like the same perpetrator or perpetrators to me." Both incidents happened early this morning in the area of Metcalf Road and Monterey Highway, just southeast of San Jose city limits.
The substation damage prompted the California Independent Service Operator to issue a "Flex Alert" Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. because of the heavy damage at the substation on Metcalf Road.
The agency asked everyone in Northern California, but especially in Silicon Valley, to conserve energy as crews worked to fix the substation's damaged equipment. Power was rerouted as the work is being done.
PG&E spokesman JD Guidi said "it does appear that there were gunshots to our facility." In addition to the leak, at least five transformers were damaged.
The gunshots were reported at 1:46 a.m. near Monterey and Blanchard roads.
Two hours after the gunfire was reported, PG&E called the sheriff's office to report that their security fence had been "breached" in the 100 block of Metcalf Road near U.S. Highway 101, according to Santa Clara County Sheriff's Det. Kurtis Stenderup.
At about the same time, and not too far away, Gilroy and Morgan Hill police departments reported that 911 calls from land lines were not working early Tuesday morning because of cut lines.
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcbayarea.com ...
One of two things:
1) EcoNUTS that hate technology - like the dirtbags that torched new houses and destroyed multiple SUVs at dealers,
2) Dumbass Obama voters looking to score some copper....haha...dumbasses!
3) Union members with some sort of dispute
Actually you’d think so on first thought, but there is a critical difference here. DIGGING up fibers and cutting them involves work - something Union workers will not do.
Actually, the union members would know exactly what to do.
What? Wait for the Obama Voters to do it and then claim credit?
My first thought, progressive union members getting a little “bonus” for some after hours activity.
They know how to get past security and cameras, know what is key to shutting it all down.
I have been on many a job site delivering concrete. first off fiber optics have usually pretty good enclosures because of the nature and material optics are, they cannot be out in the open like triplex or other high voltage power transmission cables. Of which are usually not copper. Copper is mostly in the lower after transformer lines such at from the poles to the house.
many copper thieves target high voltage lines but find their are usually non copper.
Heavy lifting involved....not a Union function.
No lock huh?
AT&T union workers have been without a contract for a year. Take out PG&E too, to make it look less directed toward them. One trick is to cause an outage like this, then go on strike and leave the replacement workers to clean up the mess. Good for a gun ban too. Heck, for $250K I’d turn MYSELF in!
This is practically a repeat of happened almost exactly four years ago in the same area — during negotiations with their unions. There’s precious little mention of this in current reporting.
I can believe it...my posts were mainly indicative of my disdain for the value and worth of unions. Unions have gone from collective bargaining to oppressive political tyranny.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.