Severed fiber causes northwest Iowa cellphone woes

FORT DODGE, Iowa (AP) — Long-distance, cellphone and 911 services have been restored after disruptions in northwest Iowa.

The services were restored Thursday afternoon.

Frontier Communications general manager Cheryl O’Hern told The Messenger, of Fort Dodge, that the problems were caused by an accident near Ames on Thursday morning. She says a communications fiber there was cut, which affected services from Ames to Mason City and from Ames to Des Moines. She says the cut disrupted long-distance service as well as cellphone service, even though it goes through a tower.

Webster County Emergency Management Agency alerted the county that 911 wasn’t working, so alternative numbers were given out to the public.