Technicians continue to work on resolving a damaged fiber circuit, which has caused an outage of cable channels in Grant County and other areas. While the Spokane Complex Fire hasn't directly been attributed to causing damage, the impact of the fire in the region has stretched resources thin and caused technicians to work on other fiber issues. The exact cause of the cable damage remains uncertain. 

The fiber path that carries these channel feeds runs from KSPS PBS in Spokane. The feeds are then transmitted throughout the Inland Northwest and Western Canada.  

“KSPS PBS is also aware of service outages in Douglas, Whitman, Chelan and Pend Oreille counties in Washington State, KSPS PBS,” as stated by KSPS PBS in an email to the Columbia Basin Herald. 

 The delay in service restoration may be attributed to personnel shortages and access difficulties caused by the fire, said KSPBS Communications and Marketing Director Peter Dunau. 

"Overall, the resources and staffing were taxed by the fire, and that's absolutely impacted our collective ability to resolve this," said Dunau.

The outage began early Sunday afternoon and affected channels KXLY ABC, KHQ NBC, KSPS PBS, KREM CBS, KSKN CW, KAYU FOX, and several associated digital channels. 

“KSPS PBS is working with Zayo, the telecommunications provider responsible for the affected fiber network, to resolve the issue as soon as possible,” the email stated. “Zayo's technicians are currently working to repair multiple fiber circuits throughout the region. At this time, KSPS PBS is not able to provide a timeframe for when service will be restored, but the station is working closely with Zayo and our distribution partners to resolve it as soon as possible.” 

Skyler J. Reep, President General Manager at KSPS PBS stated in the email that the damaged line is out of the station’s control, but all parties are working on a solution.

“We’re sorry for the disruption our viewers are experiencing. The timing makes this outage especially concerning because public television is part of our nation's Emergency Alert System, providing trusted, potentially lifesaving information when communities need it most,” Reep said.