By Katie Todd of RNZ

A spate of arson attacks on cell towers in Wānaka and the wider Otago region has left people angry and worried about communication outages, as police urge locals to report any suspicious behaviour.

Officers are investigating the latest fire that destroyed a One NZ mobile site near Wānaka cemetery last week, leaving an estimated damage bill of $100,000.

It was the third mobile site to be knocked off-line in a fortnight after similar fires in neighbouring Albert Town.

Spark confirmed vandals had also targeted a fourth tower, in downtown Wānaka, although there was limited damage.

Wānaka's Jacinta Hyslop said she was surprised to see attacks on cell towers once again, after they were vandalised world-wide in 2020 because of a conspiracy theory falsely linking 5G technology with the spread of Covid-19.

"It's destructive and unhelpful, causing loss of money too," Hyslop said.

Another Wānaka local, Noeline Dickey, said the destructive behaviour was shameful: "I'm glad you're not my child, or son or daughter. I'm glad you don't belong to my family. I would be so ashamed," she said.

Police would not confirm if they had identified any suspects, but urged locals to stay vigilant and report any suspicious behaviour around towers.

Detective Senior Sergeant Regan Boucher said the "mindless" attacks were not only frustrating for the police but posed a serious risk to the public.

"They can disrupt vital connectivity, including access to emergency services such as 111. The last thing we want, and I would also hope the persons responsible want, is for someone to be hurt because they couldn't call for help," he said.

Following the attacks, Spark and One NZ told RNZ they were able to maintain coverage through other sites, but warned service could be slower at peak times.

The telcos said customers would still be able to make 111 calls because of industry-wide emergency protocols.

Social media posts about the cell tower fires have been rife with comments claiming the towers cause cancer and migraines or are used for government surveillance.

Authorities say vandals have been targeting mobile phone telecommunications towers in Otago, in attacks which are putting the community at risk. Photo: RNZ/ Katie Todd

Telecommunications Forum chief executive Paul Brislen said theories cropped up periodically and science had not shown any evidence the towers caused harm.

"There are no health impacts whatsoever. I mean, it's one of the most heavily researched areas in modern science, really. There have been countless studies about the impacts of both cell phone towers and also the phones themselves, and because of the limits that are put on the power draw for each tower, there's really no impact whatsoever," Brislen said.

"Basically, it's the same as radio transmitting towers that you use to listen to national radio. This is a well-understood technology. It's something that's been around for coming up to 100 years that we've been using radio, and it's been proven safe over and over again."

Wānaka's Gus Roxburgh said the views of those opposed to the cell towers did not represent the views of most people in the town.

"There is always a better way to go about things than vandalism and destroying expensive property. Obviously for the community, it is a worry if cell phone towers go down. We are an isolated community, medical issues are already a problem. People often have to be helicoptered over to Dunedin if they need assistance. So anything that affects communication is a bit of a danger to the community," Roxburgh said.

Former Queenstown Lakes District mayor Glyn Lewers earlier said the attacks showed a complete disregard for community safety and infrastructure.

"I am deeply concerned and disappointed by the recent acts of vandalism targeting mobile infrastructure in our community," Lewers said.

"The deliberate destruction of a One NZ cellsite in downtown Wānaka - the second such attack in as many weeks - is not only reckless, but it puts the safety and wellbeing of our residents and visitors at risk.

"This is now a police matter and I urge anyone with information to come forward and report it immediately. We must stand together as a community to prevent further harm and ensure those responsible are held to account."

In July vandals also badly damaged a cell tower along State Highway 8 through the Lindis Pass.