A DISABILITY group home in Fullerton Cove has been left with a hazardous view in their back paddock after a 40-metre network provider tower fell onto their fence line.
It was around 6pm on Friday, April 5 when Brooks Care disability service director Shane Pritchard got the call that an Optus tower had smashed into their back paddock.
"The staff on reported hearing a big bang and our neighbour rang us up and said the tower had fallen down," he said.
On the following morning Mr Pritchard jumped in his buggy and drove down to the swampy, overgrown area where he could see the aftermath of the fall, on their 10-acre property.
"There was about a four by four metre shed with the power stuff in it, you could see all cables stretching ouit from the cabinetry to the actual tower itself," he said.
Since reporting the incident to Optus to Mr Pritchard's dismay, he alleges there's been no contact from the company about when it was going to be fixed.
"I can see some people walking around in hi-vis down there today [Wednesday, April 10] but no one has knocked on our day to tell us they're going to walk around our paddock and not even a phone call," he said.
An Optus spokesperson told the Newcastle Herald that engineers had restored connection for locals in the Fullerton Cove area after "a site on Fullerton Cove Road was damaged during a storm last week".
"There are still some safety issues for workers accessing the site which has delayed removing the damaged equipment and we are awaiting materials to arrive to rebuild the disabled site," the spokesperson said.
"Optus apologises for this inconvenience and expects the site to be rebuilt by next week."
Despite the lack of heavy communication it remains a mystery as to how the tower had come to fall, Mr Pritchard said.
"I don't really know what caused it, it could have been a weather situation but these things are meant to sit up right for years, not that much rain could knock it over," he said.
"These things stand forever, they shouldn't be falling down. It's bizarre."
He said in a way it was fortunate the tower didn't fall the other way onto Nelson Bay Road.
"It could've killed someone if that happened," he said.
