C2C services between Shoeburyness and Fenchurch Street or Liverpool Street stations in London have been affected.
The company said that 24 services have been disrupted as a result of the damage caused in the Southend area.
One Railway services on the West Anglia line through Essex and Hertfordshire have also been affected because of problems with line control equipment.
Delays were reported on the Liverpool Street to Clacton-on-Sea line owing to over-running engineering works.
Cables cut
Acting Insp Barry Carpenter, from the British Transport Police, described the attack on the cable between Southend East and Southend Central as attempted theft.
"We spoke to the mobile operations manager from the railway who said he believed that two youths had been disturbed from the site and ran off, but no cable had been taken.
"However, it looked like it had been cut and left to be taken at some later stage.
"We're now in the process of investigating the matter and the railway is looking at getting the cable repaired."
Kim Gorman, from c2c, said: "It's knocked out our signals between Southend East and Southend Central. Currently services are running 15 to 20 minutes late."
^ Back to top | BBC Sport Home | BBC Homepage | Contact us | Help | ©
~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~56~RS~)