Verizon in N.Y. and Qwest in Ia. suffered service outages hitting...
Verizon in N.Y. and Qwest in Ia. suffered service outages hitting thousands after outside crews accidentally cut buried cables. Starting Mon. up to 5,000 Verizon customers in the eastern part of Watertown, N.Y., and adjacent Rutland and Tylerville lost…
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phone service for up to 3 days. The snafu was the work of city contractors breaking pavement to rebuild Watertown’s public square. They cut 2 Verizon copper cables. Service was fully restored by Wed. night. Outlying areas were restored by Tues., but it took most of Wed. to restore service inside the city. Affected customers couldn’t make any calls, including to 911, but the 911 system itself wasn’t impaired and 911 calls placed from cellphones went through. In Ia., crews laying underground cable to connect OmniTel cellular towers Mon. afternoon sliced a Qwest fiber cable, knocking out interexchange service in Charles City, Nashua and most of Floyd County. The cable cut caused loss of all long distance connections, plus spotty local and cellular service outages. The cut disrupted 911 service across Floyd County and impaired Internet access, but most local emergency numbers still worked. OmniTel blamed the mishap on Qwest agents who erred in making the line’s location. Service was restored by Tues. afternoon.