Emergency 911 lines were temporarily down Thursday afternoon in Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana.

The outage in Lowndes County started at about 1:45 p.m. and lasted until about 3:30 p.m. when lines were brought back online, Emergency Management Agency Director Cindy Lawrence said.

Service in all counties in Mississippi were restored by 5:13 p.m., according to a notification from the Mississippi Department of Public Safety.

Scott Simmons, the chief communications officer with Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, said a cut to an AT&T fiber optic line caused a ripple effect that impacted 911 lines in all three states.

Inter-agency communication in Lowndes County was not disrupted during the outage since responders largely use radio systems to communicate to first responders, Lawrence said.

Citizens were directed to specific agencies for assistance during the outage.

Lawrence said that in order to not cause further disruptions, individuals should only call in to 911 if they have an emergency situation.

“We just want people to please call 911 for emergencies only, they’re flooded with people calling to make sure they’re up,” she said.

Oktibbeha County Emergency Management Services did not respond to calls by press time.