NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather forecasts

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
    • The Great NZ Road Trip
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
    • Cooking the Books
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Business

5G protestors not to blame for fire, say police

Chris Keall
By Chris Keall
Technology Editor/Senior Business Writer·NZ Herald·
16 Apr, 2020 11:54 PM6 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

In April a Manurewa cell phone tower was set alight motivated by a Covid-19 conspiracy theory relating to 5G mobile networks. Video / Facebook

Police have now confirmed a preliminary finding that an April 9 transmission tower fire in Porirua was caused by a fault.

At the time, many in the telco industry thought anti-5G protestors - fuelled by a new conspiracy theory which blames the mobile network technology for Covid-19 - were to blame for the blaze, which took out Kordia TV transmission gear, and badly damaged 2degrees equipment.

READ MORE:
• Juha Saarinen: Dangerous anti-5G conspiracy theorists cross the line
• Covid 19: Facebook responds after NZ cell tower arson brag video goes viral on its platform
• Far North cell tower attack linked to Covid-19 hoax

But a police spokeswoman told the Herald this morning: "There were no suspicious circumstances around the fire. A FENZ [Fire and Emergency] investigation has determined the fire was caused by an electrical fault."

Anti-5G protestors are still in the frame for two other incidents, however: the destruction of a new 4G celltower in the Far North last month, just before to due to be switched on, and an arson attack on a cell site in Manurewa - whose protagonists posted a video (above) of their efforts to Facebook on Monday night (where it was shared more than 405 times and garnered 5500 views before the social network suspended the account of the person who uploaded it).

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

This morning, a police spokesman said there was no update on the ongoing enquiry into the Manurewa attack.

If anyone had information about the Manurewa incident, they should call 105 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Attacks on cellphone towers are happening worldwide, as bogus stories tying 5G to the coronavirus outbreak gain currency on social media.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

In the UK, there have been some 80 incidents of celltower arson or vandalism since the start of the outbreak, including Tuesday's attack on a mast serving the emergency NHS Nightingale hospital in Birmingham.

Vodafone UK chief executive Nick Jeffery described attacks on 5G towers as a "matter of national security", and said police and counter terrorism authorities are now investigating the attacks, which Jeffery labelled the work of "deluded conspiracy theorists".

Here, phone company executives have been more reserved in their public comments.

The most overt link was drawn by Geoff Thorn, head of Telecommunications Forum, which represents Spark, Vodafone and 2degrees. The TCF boss said after the Kaitai attack: "We know that damage to mobile networks in other countries has been linked to groups opposed to 5G."

Discover more

Telecommunications

PM's chief science advisor weighs in on 5G

01 Dec 09:25 PM
New Zealand

Video brag: Police investigate cell tower fire thought to be linked to anti-5G attacks

13 Apr 08:35 PM
Business

Facebook responds after NZ cell tower arson brag video goes viral on its platform

13 Apr 07:23 PM
Opinion

Dangerous anti-5G conspiracy crosses the line

14 Apr 05:00 PM

Spark, Vodafone and 2degrees all told the Herald there have been multiple attacks celltowers, but none want to share details for fear of triggering copycat attacks.

A spokeswoman for Spark said, "Since the end of March, there has been vandalism, including arson attempts at a few of our cell towers.

"We share the broader industry's outrage over acts of vandalism against critical infrastructure during a pandemic – a time when connectivity is more important than ever."

Vodafone NZ infrastructure director Tony Baird called the attacks "infuriating" at time when the outbreak made communications critical and networks were seeing traffic increases of up to 60 per cent.

Technology commentator Bill Bennet said, "The attacks are going to make life harder still for everyone. Cell towers are vital infrastructure. In many parts of New Zealand they are the only practical telecommunications technology. They allow people to work from home. Students use it to keep up with lessons. Anyone in trouble needs cellular to call for emergency services.

Facebook responds

A Facebook spokesman told the Herald after the Manurewa fire, "We're taking aggressive steps to stop misinformation and harmful content from spreading on our platforms and connect people to accurate information from the World Health Organisation about coronavirus.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Content encouraging attacks on 5G masts clearly violates our policies and we have removed a number of pages, groups and posts.

"Over the last week, under our existing policies against harmful misinformation, we have also begun removing false claims that 5G technology causes the symptoms of or contraction of Covid-19."

And in an initiative announced overnight, Facebook said it will now send alerts to people who have "Liked" or commented on posts containing harmful or false claims about Covid 19.

Technology Users Association head Craig Young: "We know that there is a significant amount of misinformation on social media on 5G." Photo / Supplied
Technology Users Association head Craig Young: "We know that there is a significant amount of misinformation on social media on 5G." Photo / Supplied

5G myths debunked

The persistence of conspiracy theories around 5G even forced Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to address the topic during an April 8 Covid-19 press conference.

She said there was no link between 5G and the virus and urged anyone who was concerned to refer to the Ministry of Health and Chief Science Advisor websites.

A comprehensive "What is 5G?" explainer published on the Chief Science Adviser's website notes the difference between harmful ionising radiation, such as that produced by x-rays, which has enough energy to harm cells with prolonged exposure, and non-ionising radiation (such as the radio frequencies used for 5G transmission, 5G phones and Wi-Fi) that do not have enough energy to damage cells.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Those concerned about 5G often cite that radiofrequency radiation was classified as a "possible human carcinogen" by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (an arm of the United Nations' World Health Organisation) in 2011.

The Chief Science Adviser's 5G Q&A puts this into context, noting the "possible" category - unlike the IARC's "probable" list - includes phenomena where a link to cancer cannot be completely ruled out and "catches many commonly encountered things, such as pickles and dry cleaning, so represents a low-risk rating. To put this in perspective, even the classification above this, 'probable human carcinogens,' includes widely encountered activities including drinking very hot drinks and working night shifts".

Today, the Technology Users' Association of NZ (the recently re-branded Tuanz), also launched a plain-English guide, designed to reassure people about 5G. Find it here.

"We know that there is a significant amount of misinformation on social media on what 5G is and the unverified health risks associated with this new technology," said Tuanz head Craig Young.

"Our new site provides brief and simple explanations of why this risk is overstated and provides links to credible scientific information that debunks any theories."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Business

Premium
Tourism

'Nothing was going to stop me': Pioneer who built ski resort from scratch sells up

09 May 07:00 AM
Premium
Shares

Market close: NZ sharemarket rises as gentailers make gains

09 May 06:03 AM
Premium
Media Insider

Noise ban, off-limit interviews: TVNZ's rules as RNZ moves in; Ad agencies take aim at global merger

09 May 05:43 AM

“Not an invisible footprint”: Why technology supply chains need optimising

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Business

Premium
'Nothing was going to stop me': Pioneer who built ski resort from scratch sells up

'Nothing was going to stop me': Pioneer who built ski resort from scratch sells up

09 May 07:00 AM

Peter Foote started building Mt Dobson Ski Area with a $2000 bulldozer.

Premium
Market close: NZ sharemarket rises as gentailers make gains

Market close: NZ sharemarket rises as gentailers make gains

09 May 06:03 AM
Premium
Noise ban, off-limit interviews: TVNZ's rules as RNZ moves in; Ad agencies take aim at global merger

Noise ban, off-limit interviews: TVNZ's rules as RNZ moves in; Ad agencies take aim at global merger

09 May 05:43 AM
Premium
'Very happy': Jim Grenon to join NZME board with Steven Joyce in peace deal that ends bitter battle

'Very happy': Jim Grenon to join NZME board with Steven Joyce in peace deal that ends bitter battle

09 May 05:42 AM
Deposit scheme reduces risk, boosts trust – General Finance
sponsored

Deposit scheme reduces risk, boosts trust – General Finance

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP