FREEPORT, Armstrong County — Freeport area residents weren't able to call the 911 emergency number with their cellphones for nearly 24 hours.

R. Michael Greiser, the Freeport fire marshal, issued a news release Tuesday saying cell service is unreliable in areas within and outside the borough “especially for those with Verizon wireless or a carrier that connects to their towers.”

Greiser and Verizon both stated the service failure began Tuesday afternoon.

Chris Serico, communications manager for Verizon said, “Two separate cuts to fiber optic cables have resulted in a service disruption for some wireless customers in the Freeport area. Our technicians have responded quickly to the scene and are working to restore service.”

“There were two separate fiber cuts resulting in the service interruption that began yesterday afternoon: one by wildlife, and the other cause is still being investigated,” Serico said Wednesday.

Serico said service was restored shortly before 2 p.m. Wednesday.

Greiser said the service interruption, which began around 3 p.m. Tuesday, affected the roughly 1,680 residents of Freeport borough as well as cellphone users in Buffalo Township, Butler County, and South Buffalo Township, Armstrong County.

The borough has contacted Verizon about the spotty service and was told Verizon was aware of the issue but had no estimate on when the problem would be solved.

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