Spectrum says would-be copper thieves caused internet outage affecting L.A., Ventura counties

An attempted — and unsuccessful — copper theft in Van Nuys caused a widespread internet outage Sunday affecting swaths of Los Angeles and Ventura counties, a Spectrum spokesman confirmed to The Times.

“This morning, our lines were cut due to vandalism in Van Nuys that also affected our services in other parts of Los Angeles and Ventura,” said spokesperson Dennis Johnson. In an update on the company’s progress in restoring service, Johnson said late Sunday afternoon that “technicians restored services in Ventura this morning, and services continue to be restored this afternoon in Los Angeles.”

The incident Johnson attributed the incident to copper wire thieves — who were looking for copper in a place where there was none.

The company said that one or more individuals cut multiple fiber lines that were on the poles, apparently climbing trees to gain access. The lines were cut sometime after midnight.

Users reported on social media that their internet was out in the pre-dawn hours of Sunday and throughout the day — with some voicing frustration over the disruption occurring on Father’s Day.

On X, user @strappyheels wanted to know: “Will customers get credit on their bill since the outage has been ongoing since 2am and there is no ETA?”

Another apparent customer, @5cottFive expressed disbelief on social media at Spectrum’s posted explanation citing “a criminal act of vandalism.”

“There’s no way a single act of vandalism took out regional internet for all of Ventura and Los Angles counties,” the user posted. “This is a serious outage spanning from Ventura, Ojai, Simi, The Valley, and apparently all the way down to Anaheim.”

But the outage was not universal or as long-lasting for some. At 4:57 p.m., @Ladybugzz21 posted that her internet in the San Fernando Valley was working.

Work to restore some areas was continuing into the evening, the company stated.

The company has had to make “thousands” of fiber splices to repair the lines, a process that is time consuming, even with the help of extra crews that were called in, a company statement said: “The fibers need to be spliced in the lines to restore services.”

In its statement, Spectrum said that the severing of wires has become “an issue affecting the entire telecommunications industry, not just Spectrum, largely due to the increase in the price of precious metals. These acts of vandalism are not only a crime, but also affect our customers, local businesses and potentially emergency services.”

The statement noted: “Spectrum’s fiber lines do not include any copper.”

The company said it was working with the Los Angeles Police Department in offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to an arrest: “Anyone with information on this act of vandalism can contact Spectrum at (833) 404-TIPS or 8477 or reach out to local law enforcement.”