Severe Lightning Strike Causes Internet Outage for Sparklight Customers

News Summary

Sparklight customers in Bluffton, Beaufort, and Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, are facing internet, video, and phone service outages due to a severe lightning strike. Emergency response teams are working to restore services, but full connectivity remains uncertain. This outage highlights the region’s dependency on Sparklight for essential services.

Bluffton, South Carolina – Severe Lightning Strike Causes Internet Service Outage for Sparklight Customers

Sparklight customers in South Carolina and Georgia are currently experiencing widespread internet, video, and phone service outages following a severe lightning strike that occurred on Tuesday. The affected areas include Bluffton, Beaufort, and Hilton Head Island, where many residents and businesses rely on Sparklight as their primary service provider.

As of 4:48 p.m. on Tuesday, reports indicated that numerous customers were without their essential services. Data from Downdetector showed that at 3:22 p.m., there were 162 reported issues, which decreased to 66 by 4:22 p.m., indicating a significant impact on the network’s functionality due to the storm.

Sparklight, which is owned by Cable One, provides service to over 1 million customers across 24 states, with a significant presence in Beaufort County. The area has a high dependency on Sparklight for both residential and commercial connectivity, making the outage particularly disruptive.

In addition to the current outage, this is not the first disruption for Sparklight this year. The last reported service interruption took place in early April, while another outage occurred in mid-September due to four separate fiber cuts caused by a third party. That incident resulted in a substantial 10-hour service shutdown for many customers.

Emergency response efforts began promptly after the lightning strike, with electricians from the local power company on-site to assist with service recovery starting at 6:03 p.m. Their efforts were focused on restoring power to the site housing Sparklight’s equipment. By 7:13 p.m., the utility company confirmed that power had been successfully restored to the affected area, allowing technicians to start assessing and repairing the damaged infrastructure.

By 9:02 p.m., crews were actively engaged in replacing damaged equipment and performing a hardware swap to expedite the restoration process. However, at that time, complete service had not yet been reinstated. As of 10:32 p.m., some services were restored in areas of Beaufort and Jasper Counties, but uncertainty remained about when full service would be achieved for all customers.

It’s important to note that despite the extensive service disruption, there were no reported issues affecting 911 emergency services during this outage. The Jasper County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson confirmed that both dispatch and 911 services continued to operate without any interruptions, ensuring that residents could still access emergency assistance if needed.

As the company works to resolve the ongoing issues and restore service fully, customers are encouraged to stay updated on the situation through official channels. The total timeline for complete service restoration is still unclear, as technical teams continue to assess the damage and implement necessary repairs.

Residents are advised to remain patient as Sparklight responds to this unexpected setback, which is unfortunately a reminder of how severe weather can impact critical infrastructure. Efforts are ongoing to restore full connectivity as promptly as possible.

Deeper Dive: News & Info About This Topic

HERE Resources

Widespread Internet Outage Hits Beaufort County, SC
Hilton Head Island Welcomes Sparklight Rebranding
Beaufort County Struggles with Internet Outage
Internet Outage Hits Beaufort County Residents and Businesses

Additional Resources

• Island Packet: Severe Lightning Strike
• Wikipedia: Internet Outage
• Island Packet: Sparklight and Local Nonprofits
• Google Search: Sparklight Service Outages
• Island Packet: Service Interruption Updates
• Google Scholar: Internet Infrastructure Outages
• Light Reading: Cable One Supports Nonprofits
• Encyclopedia Britannica: Internet Service Provider
• Island Packet: Sparklight Customer Service
• Google News: Internet Services Lightning Strikes