I was at Public works ~2010 and though we always dug around utility marks on the ground, we'd always freak out when the backhoe sliced through an unmarked 50-10

I was at Public works ~2010 and though we always dug around utility marks on the ground, we'd always freak out when the backhoe sliced through an unmarked 50-1000 pair cable that was buried from ~1960-1985. A ton of colorful spaghetti strands spilling into the hole, a backhoe operator's worst nightmare. Then we'd call it in and be told that it was 'abandoned'. The City was full of abandoned above-ground pedestals too. All heavy above ground copper (when no longer in use due to neighborhood concentrators connected by fiber) has been recycled. Between communication manholes along city streets there were poured concrete conduits so cables could just be cut and pulled out. But in many areas these multipair copper cables were laid without plastic conduit used today and were just laid in trenches underground. And those meant for underground use had metal sheaths but not strong enough to pull out, too much weight and friction on the outside. They cannot be retrieved without being cut into many sections and a supreme effort.