Charter service lost temporarily

A severed fiber-optic cable shut off Internet, telephone and some television service for thousands of Charter Communications Inc. subscribers in Pasadena, Glendale and Burbank for nearly five hours Sunday afternoon.

It wasn’t clear how the line was cut, said spokeswoman Anita Lamont, who identified the trouble spot only as a location in Pasadena.

“We know it wasn’t one of our crews,” she said.

Customers were without phone, Internet and most television services from about noon to 4:30 p.m. Some TV channels were still available.

Lamont said customers who wanted their bills prorated for the lost service would need to contact customer service at (888) 438-2427.

St. Louis-based Charter, the nation’s fourth-largest cable operator, is burdened by debt and announced last month that it expected to file a prearranged Chapter 11 bankruptcy by April 1.

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-- David Pierson