Fire knocks out public-access TV channels in Tacoma. Investigation underway

Public-access TV channels, including TV Tacoma and Pierce County TV, are unavailable to subscribers after a fire at a city facility in Hilltop on damaged equipment.

The fire took place in the early morning of Nov. 9 in the 1200 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Way, according to a release from the city. The damage severed the fiber optic connection for public-access channels, which are unavailable to subscribers on Comcast and LightCurve.

The damage also limited the city’s visibility of CityNet network, an “internal data network infrastructure” that connects government buildings in Tacoma.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, the release states.

“Updates will be provided on the City’s official social media platforms as more information becomes available,” the release states.

The channels that have been impacted by the fire damage are public, educational and government channels, also known as PEG channels.

Isha Trivedi

The News Tribune

Isha Trivedi covers Tacoma city hall, Pierce County government and education for The News Tribune. She has previously worked at The Mercury News, the Palo Alto Weekly, the Chronicle of Higher Education and the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. She grew up in San Jose, California and graduated with a bachelor of arts in journalism and anthropology from the George Washington University. She is a proud alumna of The GW Hatchet, her alma mater’s independent student newspaper, and has been recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists for her work with the publication.