We can’t really shake the conspiracy theories, can we? They are, for the most part, a harmless perspective based on a myth or a rumor. However, every once in a while some conspiracy theory is able to gain just enough momentum to actually cause damage. The recent being the news that 5G is to blame for the Coronavirus.
People in the UK are currently cellphone masts into flames and even taking out their frustration on broadband engineers because of circulating theories that claim that COVID-19 might be a result of 5G. Among the very first telephone masts to be burned was the one located in Birmingham. The network operator EE said that the fire was probably an arson attack.
The company released the following statement, ‘To deliberately take away mobile connectivity at a time when people need it more than ever to stay connected to each other, is a reckless, harmful and dangerous thing to do. We will try to restore full coverage as quickly as possible, but the damage caused by the fire is significant.’
There have also been fires at Liverpool and Melling in Merseyside. Some of these fires were also captured on video and shared on Facebook by the supposed anti-5G protestors. These protestors have gone far enough to even verbally abuse the broadband engineers. Engineers for BT Openreach, a home broadband services provider, have actually posted public pleas on anti-5G Facebook groups where they have said that they should be spared from the verbal abuse because they are not even involved with the work that is related to mobile networks.
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport tweeted that read, ‘there is absolutely no credible evidence’ that shows that COVID-19 and 5G are linked. However, there is little to no impact on the protestors. Another video shows that engineers for the broadband company Community Fibre were verbally abused by a woman who claimed that 5G is being installed for curbing the population. The company has responded by revealing that it isn’t even using 5G anywhere.