ENTERPRISE — Three telephone service pedestals in the rural Enterprise area were burned in just seven days by landowners burning ditches along roadsides, temporarily disrupting service, said a spokesman with Ziply Fiber, the company that owns the pedestals.

“This is an uncommon volume for such a short window of time,” said Ryan Luckin, vice president of marketing and communications in an email April 15.

Luckin said telephone customers were quickly returned to service on a temporary basis. He did not know if cellular towers were affected by the damage and thus, was unsure if cell service was disrupted.

He said it depends on the extent of the damage, but he estimated the cost to replace the pedestal would be between $1,800 and $2,000. He said often the responsible landowner is billed for the damage, but that’s evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

“The most important thing is to restore service quickly and keep residents connected to critical means of communication,” Luckin said.

The pedestal is one that provides telephone service to customers in rather remote areas, he said.

In the future, Luckin said, landowners conducting burning should be “cautious and aware of surroundings and nearby utilities.”

“Damages such as this can take customers out of service and cause them to have no capability to contact 911 for emergency services,” he said. “In addition, many utilities are located together and when power is involved, life-threatening injuries can occur when damages such as this happen.”