At 10 a.m. Friday October 31, the San Juan County Sheriff’s office reported that an fiber optic data and phone cable has apparently been damaged, leaving residents of Orcas, Lopez and Shaw Islands unable to telephone off-island or contact the 911 emergency dispatch center, which is located in Friday Harbor.

Sheriff’s dispatchers were working on getting 911 calls routed to local Fire Stations so that emergency responders could be contacted. First reports indicate that cell phone service has been affected as well.