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  "description": "Gas line strikes in Missouri highlight safety concerns as telecom construction accelerates. \n",
  "path": "/fiber-construction-blamed-for-one-in-four-utility-strikes/",
  "publishedAt": "2025-10-01T19:54:55.000Z",
  "site": "https://broadbandbreakfast.com",
  "tags": [
    "_nearly one in four cases of underground_",
    "_80 percent of a fiber build’s cost_",
    "_Damage Intervention Reporting Tool report_"
  ],
  "textContent": "Oct. 1, 2025 – Fiber installations in Lexington, Missouri, struck two gas lines in 24 hours. Nationwide, such strikes now account for _nearly one in four cases of underground_ utility damage, according to the Common Ground Alliance.\n\nLexington Mayor **Tom Hughes** said the rapid push to expand high-speed internet is fueling the risk. “It actually happens a lot. It happens in communities all over the state because of the rush to get Internet in,” Hughes said, noting no injuries in last week’s incidents involving Xfinity contractors.\n\nEarlier this year, however, a fiber strike in the same city had far deadlier results.\n\nA gas line that was not properly marked was damaged during broadband work, leading to a house explosion that killed a five-year-old boy, the National Transportation Safety Board reported.\n\nAnalysts say labor can represent up to _80 percent of a fiber build’s cost_, an economic pressure point that can drive crews to cut corners. Safety officials warn that speed, paired with weak coordination, raises the chance of error even with colored flags and paint markings meant to signal buried lines.\n\nThe _Damage Intervention Reporting Tool report_ logged more than 189,000 damage incidents nationwide in 2024, with fiber and telecom work responsible for 23 percent. Missouri and other states have tightened excavation standards, but observers warn stronger safeguards may be needed as billions in broadband funding accelerate fiber deployment into already crowded underground corridors.",
  "title": "Fiber Construction Blamed for One in Four Utility Strikes",
  "updatedAt": "2026-03-11T05:45:07.734Z"
}