Cut Cable Knocks Out Phone Service on East Coast

Long-distance telephone service along the entire East Coast was disrupted for several hours Friday when a primary transmission cable was severed by a construction crew in New Jersey.

The accident in a railroad yard just outside South Amboy, N.J., caused massive rerouting of thousands of calls that ordinarily use the fiber-optics cable. The problem affected both outgoing calls placed on the East Coast and incoming calls, according to American Telephone & Telegraph officials.

“It’s almost like a highway, in that you have to go along it to get from say, New York to Florida,” said Jim Nelson, an AT&T; manager. “This is a major blockage, affecting the whole East Coast.”

The disruption in service meant many callers either got a recording asking that they dial again or a busy signal. Thousands of telephone calls across the country were affected.

The accident occurred shortly after noon Eastern time when a 3-inch light-guide cable was sliced. Calls were rerouted through other lines, and service was nearly normal by Friday night. The cable repairs were expected to be completed over the weekend.