Orbitel restores service to 1,200 after overnight outage

A bullet pierced an Orbitel service box, severing a 288-count fiberoptic cable overnight, causing service outages to nearly 1,200 residential customers and some businesses in Maricopa.

“It was certainly a large outage, caused by human destruction well out of our control,” said John Schurz, President and General Manager of Orbitel in Maricopa. “I can’t say too much because the police are investigating, but it was caused by bullets.”

Schurz said the damage took place between midnight and 1 a.m. and affected customers primarily in the Maricopa Meadows, Alterra, Pala Brea, Desert Cedars, and Acacia Crossings communities, as well as the Heritage District.

Shurz said service to most customers was back up at about 8 a.m.

“Fiber (cable) is basically glass,” he said. “We had to splice new fiber, which is a delicate, skilled, and time-consuming job. It’s not like running a new cord from the modem to your home computer. We appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding with this outage.”