MCI WorldCom fiber cut - [belated]

Sun Oct 24 21:50:45 UTC 1999

Unnamed Administration sources reported that Daniel Senie said:
> 
> When gas installers lay underground plastic gas lines (I have such
> running to my backup generator) they lay a wire in the ground next to
> the pipe. 
{}
> The next thing done when an underground gas pipe is laid, is a mylar
> film is buried, a foot or so above the pipe, which has all kinds of
> warnings on it about the gas line below. The tape is mirror-reflective
> mylar. 

A) I've never seen fiber without wire for the locaters to use later.

B) Fiber duct is often punched through with a ram, not buried
by cut & cover methods; it being far cheaper to ram. But b1)
that means there is no way to leave "buried trouble below" tape
and b2) the NEXT guy will likely be ramming as well so even if
there was tape, no one would see it.

Note the ram is a source of many problems. The protypical is 
the cas company uses one to install a new plastic line to a house,
inadventently going clean through a 6" sewer line. Trees soon
clog the sewer with roots, and a sewer company roto-rooters
[tm] the line clear, flooding the sewer system and basement with
gas. Kaboom.

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