The internet outage that caused massive hours-long delays to flights at Sacramento International Airport (SMF) began after an AT&T wire was intentionally cut, officials said. Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office Spokesperson Amal Gandhi said power lines were intentionally cut at Bayou Way and Power Line Road, causing power outages and impacting flights on Southwest Airlines and Delta Air Lines. . The pole is about 2 miles from Terminal B. The sheriff’s office, which handles airport security, noticed the service disruption around 1:30 a.m., Gandhi said. When crews arrived at the affected utility poles, they discovered the wires had been intentionally cut. Asked whether the line could have been cut by mistake, Mr. Gandhi reaffirmed that the crime was intentional, saying, “There was someone who knew what they were doing.” It seems like.” “So this wasn’t just a couple of teenagers…pulling out wires as a prank. It looks like it was very intentional…They didn’t know what they were doing. ” Investigators are confident they will find the person involved. Mr. Gandhi explained that any airport in the country is one of the most closely monitored areas possible. Those responsible could face at least a felony charge of criminal damage to property, but the FBI is also investigating and additional charges could arise depending on the motive, Gandhi said. That depends on whether it was a prank or something more criminal that warrants further involvement by federal authorities. Crime scene investigators were also seen taking photos of the area where the power lines had been cut. Investigators were also dusting off utility poles for photos. Some flights arrived as late as 156 minutes, and most departures were delayed by 30 minutes to an hour, according to SMF’s flight status webpage. This power outage caused great confusion for passengers. A line of people stretched across the entire terminal. “Someone downstairs said, ‘It’s going to take two hours,'” said a confused Teresa Falkenstein. “I’m worried about whether I’ll make it on time. It’s just pretty bad.” People like Byron Welch and his wife missed their morning flight from Sacramento. “Well, I can book a much later flight, but I won’t be in Omaha until midnight, so it’s going to be a long day,” Welch said upon arrival. At the airport around 8am, SMF urged passengers to contact their airlines for flight details. KCRA 3 reporter Maricela de la Cruz, who was at the airport around 11 a.m., said additional Southwest Airlines staff were called in and the system was being restarted. . Some kiosks are also currently operational. By 12:50 p.m., she reported that the line was back to normal. AT&T’s statement reads: “We have restored internet and wireless service to affected customers in the Sacramento International Airport area. ” This is a developing story. Check out KCRA 3 for the latest information. See more of California’s top stories here | Download the app.
The internet outage that caused massive hours-long delays to flights at Sacramento International Airport (SMF) began after AT&T lines were intentionally disconnected, officials said.
Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office Spokesman Amar Gandhi said power lines were intentionally cut at Bayou Way and Power Line Road, causing power outages and impacting flights on Southwest Airlines and Delta Air Lines. Ta. The pole is about 2 miles from Terminal B.
Gandhi said the sheriff’s office, which handles security at the airport, noticed the service disruption around 1:30 a.m., and when crews arrived at the affected utility poles, they discovered the wires had been intentionally cut. He said he noticed that there was.
Asked whether the line could have been cut by mistake, Mr. Gandhi reaffirmed that the attack was intentional.
“He seemed like someone who knew what he was doing,” Gandhi said. “So this is not just a couple of teenagers who pulled out the wire as a prank. [It] They look very intentional…like they knew what they were doing. ”
Investigators are confident they will find those involved. Mr. Gandhi explained that any airport in the country is one of the most closely monitored areas possible. Those responsible could face at least a felony charge of criminal damage to property, but the FBI is also investigating and additional charges could arise depending on the motive, Gandhi said.
It depends on whether it was a prank or something criminal that warrants further involvement by federal authorities.
Crime scene investigators were seen taking photos of the area where the power lines had been cut. Investigators were also dusting utility poles for prints.
SMF flight status web page Some flights were delayed by up to 156 minutes in arrivals, while most departures were delayed by 30 minutes to an hour.
The power outage made passenger backup extremely difficult and created lines of people throughout the terminal.
“Someone downstairs said, ‘It’s going to take two hours,'” Teresa Falkenstein said, confused as to where to line up. “I’m worried about whether I’ll make it on time. It’s just a pretty bad situation.”
People like Mr. and Mrs. Byron Welch missed their morning flight from Sacramento. “Well, I can book a much later flight, but I won’t get to my destination in Omaha until midnight, so it’s going to be a long day,” Welch said upon arrival.Airport around 8am
SMF urges passengers to contact their airline for flight details.
KCRA 3’s Maricela de la Cruz, who was at the airport around 11 a.m., said additional Southwest staff was called in and the system was being restarted. Some kiosks are also currently operational. By 12:50 p.m., she reported the line was back to normal.
AT&T’s statement reads:
“Following a fiber cut that appears to have been caused by vandalism or attempted theft, we have restored internet and wireless service to affected customers in the Sacramento International Airport area. We appreciate the patience of our customers as we worked to repair it as quickly as possible. Yes, it is possible. “
This is a developing story. Please refer to KCRA 3 for the latest information.
See more stories from California’s top news stories. | Download the app.