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For years, building owners and property managers have been hearing that traditional copper telephone service is being phased out. Across Los Angeles, however, there is now a much more immediate reason to reconsider any emergency communication system that still depends on a conventional landline: copper wire theft is causing real, prolonged telephone outages throughout the region.
Recent incidents have affected communities from the Hollywood Hills and Studio City to East Los Angeles and Boyle Heights. NBC Los Angeles recently reported that AT&T customers in the Hollywood Hills lost landline service after copper wire theft disrupted the network. Residents in Laurel Canyon described traditional telephone service as particularly important because portions of the hillside community have limited cellular coverage.
The problem is not isolated. Spectrum News reported on October 29 that a Studio City resident had been without two AT&T landlines, including a business line, since late August because of copper wire theft. The report also noted that Los Angeles recorded more than 1,100 telecommunications theft and vandalism incidents in 2025, making the region one of the hardest hit areas in California.
For building owners, these outages raise an important question: what happens if the telephone line being interrupted is connected to an elevator emergency phone, intercom, gate system, area of refuge, or other critical communication equipment?
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Copper Theft Is No Longer Just a Utility Company Problem
Copper theft has become a serious infrastructure problem throughout Los Angeles County. Thieves commonly target accessible telephone and utility cabling because of the resale value of copper. In some cases, they also cut fiber-optic cables mistakenly believing they contain valuable copper, creating additional communication outages.
ABC7 reported in August that Los Angeles led the nation in wire and cable theft incidents, with investigators linking the increase in part to the rising value of copper. The damage has affected telephone, internet, utility, and other communications infrastructure throughout the region.
These incidents can also take considerable time to repair. Earlier this year, copper theft disabled landline telephone service at the East Los Angeles Sheriff’s Station for nearly two months. According to ABC7, approximately 200 telephone lines required reconnection, and AT&T said copper cable outages generally take substantially longer to restore than fiber outages because of the complexity of the infrastructure. Emergency dispatch remained operational, but the incident demonstrated how vulnerable traditional telephone infrastructure can be when physical copper cables are damaged or stolen.
For a residential customer, losing a landline is frustrating. For a commercial property that relies on that line for an elevator emergency phone or another life-safety communication system, the consequences can be considerably more serious.
Your Elevator Phone May Still Be Connected to the Same Copper Network
Many elevators throughout Los Angeles and Southern California were installed when a dedicated POTS, or Plain Old Telephone Service, line was the standard method of providing emergency communications from the elevator cab.
The elevator equipment itself may continue to function perfectly well. The vulnerability is often the telephone service connected to it.
When someone presses the emergency call button inside an elevator, the phone must have a working communications path to reach the appropriate answering or monitoring service. If the copper telephone line serving the building has been damaged, disconnected, or taken out of service, that communication path may no longer be available.
Replacing an otherwise functional elevator phone is not necessarily the solution. In many buildings, the more practical approach is to replace the telephone line behind the equipment.
Copper-to-Cellular Conversion Can Remove That Dependency
Destra Business Services specializes in converting existing elevator and emergency telephone equipment from traditional copper service to cellular communication.
Our Mobile Connect 2 cellular gateway interfaces with compatible existing telephone equipment and provides the dial tone and telephone connection the equipment expects, while carrying calls over a cellular network rather than through the telephone company’s copper infrastructure.
This means many properties can retain their existing elevator phone while eliminating their dependence on the outside copper telephone line serving the building.
A copper-to-cellular conversion can be especially valuable for older apartment buildings, condominiums, commercial properties, parking structures, hotels, senior living facilities, schools, churches, and other Los Angeles properties where replacing complete emergency communication systems would otherwise be unnecessary and expensive.
Cellular Conversion Does Not Mean Ignoring Signal Conditions
The recent Hollywood Hills outage also highlights an important point: cellular service must be evaluated properly at each property.
Some hillside areas of Los Angeles have challenging cellular coverage. A professional conversion should therefore include evaluation of the available cellular signal and installation requirements rather than simply plugging a cellular device into an existing telephone connection and assuming it will work properly.
DBS evaluates the location and existing communication equipment so that the cellular gateway can be installed where appropriate connectivity is available. Emergency communication systems also need to be considered as complete systems, including power and backup-power requirements where applicable.
The objective is not simply to replace one type of telephone bill with another. It is to establish a reliable communication path appropriate for the building and the equipment being served.
Copper Outages Can Last Much Longer Than Property Managers Expect
One of the most concerning aspects of the current Los Angeles copper theft problem is the length of some outages.
A conventional telephone outage caused by equipment trouble might once have meant waiting for a technician or a relatively simple repair. When thieves remove large sections of cable or repeatedly target the same infrastructure, restoration can become much more complicated.
Recent Southern California incidents have involved outages lasting weeks or even months. ABC7 has also reported that some Los Angeles fire stations affected by copper theft have begun transitioning business telephone lines to cellular platforms.
For property managers, that changes the calculation. Waiting for a damaged copper network to be restored may be acceptable for a rarely used office line. It is much harder to justify when the affected connection supports an elevator phone or other emergency communication system.
If Your Copper Line Is Down Now, You May Not Need to Wait for It to Be Repaired
If your Los Angeles property is currently experiencing an AT&T landline outage or another copper-service interruption, this may be the right time to determine whether the affected line can be converted to cellular service.
In many installations, Mobile Connect 2 allows DBS to work with the emergency telephone equipment already in place, avoiding the cost and disruption of replacing equipment that remains functional.
The result is a modern cellular communication path without unnecessarily rebuilding the entire elevator phone system.
This is also an opportunity for property owners with multiple buildings to identify other copper-dependent emergency lines before they become the next outage.
Check Your Elevator and Emergency Communication Lines Now
If you manage a property in Los Angeles, Hollywood Hills, Studio City, Laurel Canyon, Boyle Heights, East Los Angeles, or another community affected by copper telephone outages, check which building systems are still connected to conventional landlines.
Do not assume that an elevator phone is operational simply because the elevator itself is running normally. The communication line is a separate component and should be tested regularly.
If your property currently has a failed copper telephone line, has experienced repeated landline outages, or you simply want to eliminate your dependence on aging copper infrastructure, Destra Business Services can evaluate your existing equipment and determine whether a Mobile Connect 2 copper-to-cellular conversion is appropriate.
DBS provides cellular communication solutions for elevators, emergency phones, intercoms, areas of refuge, gate systems, pool phones, and other equipment throughout Los Angeles and Southern California.
Do not wait for the next copper theft or extended telephone outage to discover that an emergency phone has lost its connection. Use the form below and contact Destra Business Services to discuss converting your existing copper telephone service to cellular.
