Severed underwater cable cuts 911 service, calls between Washington islands
(Photo courtesy of San Juan Islands Visitors Bureau)
FRIDAY HARBOR -- CenturyLink is working to fix a severed underwater cable that cut 911 service and local phone calls between San Juan, Orcas and Lopez Islands recently, the Seattle Times reported.
According to the Times, the telecommunications cable was severed about a mile off of Lopez Island, limiting all calls from the islands to their island of origin.
A dive team is slated to view the severed underwater cable soon and determine how long it will take to fix. Until then, CenturyLink is hoping to team with Orcas Power & Light Cooperative to provide temporary service to the islands. Updates on repare are being posted on OPALCO's website.
According to the San Juan Islander, residents should call these numbers locally if they need to report an emergency, a power outage or other inter-island problem:
Lopez & Shaw: 468-2991
San Juan: 378-4151
Orcas: 376-2331
In case of emergency, please use the following numbers to access 911:
Lopez & Shaw: 468-2991
San Juan: 911
Orcas: 376-2331