Sabotaged signal: New images reveal severed cables that cut communication for thousands

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - Thousands of people in Windward Oahu were left without phone and internet service over the weekend.

And now we know why.

Photographs snapped by Hawaiian Telcom workers show multiple fiber optic cables cut in two.

The damaged lines were discovered around 2 p.m. Saturday near Heeia State Park, but officials say impacts from the act of vandalism were felt from Waimanalo to Laie.

We’re told more than 2,000 people, primarily residential customers, were without internet service. Cell phone service was also down for some AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon customers, causing confusion that took a financial toll on some Windward Oahu businesses.

“I lose a lot of business,” said Thai Food Express food truck owner Tommy Thepseanavomg. “They thought we were closed because the phone has been off.”

Retired FBI agent Tom Simon said, “Think of a fiber optic cable like the highway that carries all of your phone calls, text messages and internet data at the speed of light. When it’s cut, it’s like shutting down the main freeway. Suddenly nothing can get through.”

“This wasn’t just vandalism. It exposed a soft spot in the island’s infrastructure that bad actors could exploit,” Simon added. “This attack shows how exposed these physical sites really are.”

Honolulu police launched a felony criminal property damage investigation.

Photographs taken by Hawaiian Telcom crews indicate people had been in the area where the severed cables were found. However, it’s still unclear if they had anything to do with the damage.

Meanwhile, HNN Investigates asked the telecommunications company what it’s doing to protect its critical infrastructure.

A spokesperson responded, “It’s not practical to monitor utility poles across the state, so our solution is to build a redundant network to minimize the impact on service to customers when these types of incidents occur.”

All total, the outage lasted about 16 hours. Service was restored by 6 a.m. Sunday.

If you have any information that can help police crack this case, call Honolulu CrimeStoppers at 808-955-8300.

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