Overnight Spectrum outage in CB caused by fiber damage

“It’s like sewing spaghetti noodles together”

by Katherine Nettles

A Spectrum Internet outage that started on Tuesday morning and lasted almost 24 hours wreaked havoc across businesses and residents in Crested Butte this week, as damage to the network took out internet service for hundreds of Spectrum customers on a busy weekday. It was restored by Wednesday morning.

“Damage to our fiber network was caused by excavation work in the area, resulting in a service interruption for some customers,” confirmed Spectrum communications director Danielle Dunn, based in Greenwood Village. Dunn said the location of the damage was near Seventh Street and Red Lady Avenue, where road closures are currently in place as utility lines are being connected from the town to the county’s Whetstone housing project.

The outage lasted from approximately 9 a.m. Tuesday morning until about 6 a.m. on Wednesday morning. Dunn said crews responded immediately and continued working overnight to repair the damage and restore service as quickly and safely as possible. “We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate our customers’ patience,” she said. Dunn explained that thousands of fibers had to be spliced. “It’s like sewing spaghetti noddles together,” she said.

Wednesday morning service had been restored for most affected customers, and Spectrum crews continued working Wednesday to complete the remaining restoration work.

Gunnison County assistant county manager for operations and sustainability John Cattles said he was not aware of any issues at the excavation site. “Our contractors did not hit a power line yesterday, I’m not sure what caused the outage,” he said in response to an inquiry from the Crested Butte News.

 Crested Butte town clerk Lynelle Stafford said the town had limited knowledge of the cause. “To the best of the town’s knowledge, a Spectrum line was cut yesterday due to the utility digging,” she said.