Cut Fiber Optic Line Caused Yesterday's Outage

Now we know why there was a cellular and Internet outage yesterday in Gallup and McKinley County yesterday.

According to the Gallup Police Department:

CELL AND TELEPHONE OUTAGE

We are aware of a cellular telephone and landline telephone outage. This appears to be affecting most, if not all, of McKinley County. If you are in Gallup and have an emergency, please go to your nearest Gallup Fire Department station.

Local government officials are gathering to coordinate a response. We will release more information as it becomes available.

UPDATE AT 1:30PM

We have learned that the cell/telephone outage is due to a fiber optic line that has been cut near Laguna, New Mexico. This is primarily affecting CenturyLink customers. Local cellular towers rely on CenturyLink for their "backbone", which is why most local cellular services are mostly down. This outage is also affecting Grants, NM.

Depending on your cellular provider, you may or may not be able to contact 911. If you have an emergency, you are encouraged to go to the nearest Gallup Fire Department station.

PLEASE DO NOT CALL 911 IF YOU DO NOT HAVE AN EMERGENCY. Metro Dispatch is aware that cellular services are out.