Thousand Oaks Verizon customers found out last Monday what it was like in the olden days when there were no phone lines.

There was no dialing 911. ATM systems were down. Some Internet connections weren't working.

Homes and businesses were affected. Verizon's TV service was also down.

All because a line was accidentally cut at a construction site in Camarillo.

A fiber optic cable was damaged, causing massive telecommunication failure throughout Ventura County from about 9:45 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Ventura County Fire Department spokesperson Capt. Ron Oatman said.

"It affected the whole county and went up the coast to Goleta," Oatman said.

The police increased patrols. The fire department called all of its firetrucks back to their stations.

Word went out over the Internet asking the media to inform the public to flag down law enforcement or go to their nearest fire station if they had an emergency and could not reach help by phone.

"We were able to communicate using radio," Oatman said.

Normally, those who dial 911 and can't get through should try to call (805) 3899710, the nonemergency number, Oatman said. "But this time the phones were affected, so that didn't help," he said.

Next Mon., July 13, fire officials, law enforcement and others affected by the crisis will gather to analyze what they did right or wrong so they can learn from the incident, Oatman said.

"We've experienced this in the past, but in smaller areas at a time," Oatman said.

—Nancy Needham