AT&T Restores Kentwood Internet, Works to Fix Hammond Outages After 880 Feet of Copper and Fiber Theft
Updated
Updated · WBRZ · Jul 14
AT&T Restores Kentwood Internet, Works to Fix Hammond Outages After 880 Feet of Copper and Fiber Theft
2 articles · Updated · WBRZ · Jul 14
Summary
AT&T restored internet service in Kentwood on Monday, ending an outage that town officials said hit hundreds of households after thieves stripped about 880 feet of fiber and copper from poles.
Hammond residents off North Coburn Road were still without internet for an eighth straight day, with AT&T saying it is working to restore phone and internet service to a small number of customers.
Tangipahoa authorities have arrested five people since the start of July and say crews are coordinating across parishes because thieves cut lines, move quickly and sometimes haul stolen copper across state lines.
The repeated thefts are pushing residents and officials away from aging copper infrastructure: one Hammond household switched to Starlink, while Kentwood said AT&T is already moving the town from copper to fiber.