OGALLALA, Neb. (AP) – Prairie dogs get the blame for an internet and phone outage in western Nebraska.

Officials with Charter Communications say prairie dogs apparently chewed through some buried fiber optic cable about two miles from Ogallala.

The problem was discovered Monday morning. Spokeswoman Heather Nessler told KNEB radio in Scottsbluff that there were hundreds of prairie dog mounds in the area, and it took time to find the cut and get it repaired. Service was rerouted and repairs were completed about seven hours later.