Since a construction crew cut through fiber and copper cables on Sept. 20 and disrupted Frontier Communications FiOS and copper services to residents and businesses, one of the questions being asked is how it happened.

The question has not been answered yet, but IMCO General Construction — whose crew cut through the cables while working on the Redmond Way Stormwater Treatment Facility project — is working on it.

Ashley Kimberley, the company’s spokesperson, said one of their priorities after the cables were cut was to work with Frontier to get service restored as quickly as possible, but another priority has been to investigate the situation to see how it happened.

In a previous report, City of Redmond Public Works Director Linda De Boldt said the crew was excavating a trench and installing a storm drainpipe. In that report, De Boldt said “it was a mistake, the contractors hit cables.”

Kimberley said the construction crew believed the communication line they were digging around and had cut was abandoned, but they were wrong and so IMCO is looking into the chain of events that led to this misunderstanding.

“In 36 years of business, we’ve never been involved in this kind of situation where a mistake has affected a community in this way,” Kimberley said.

Because this is new territory for the company, she added that they are not sure how long the investigation will take.

Kimberley said IMCO takes project coordination and planning very seriously, so in addition to figuring out how the cables ended up getting cut, the company is also doing all it can to make sure something like this does not happen again.

“We remain committed to working with the City of Redmond to complete this project successfully,” she said.

Kimberley said this is the first time IMCO, which was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Ferndale, has contracted with the City of Redmond. The company has both public and private clients and focuses on areas such as transportation, water, wastewater, marine infrastructure and utilities.

Kimberley said on Redmond’s stormwater project, IMCO is 80 percent self performing, meaning the remaining 20 percent of the work is being performed by subcontractors.

The City of Redmond is also conducting an investigation of the situation.

“We have an active investigation underway and we plan to make a full public report once it is completed,” said Redmond Mayor John Marchione. “Our first priority is to ensure that everyone has minimal service to conduct business. We have no estimated completion date at this time.”

According to a press release the City of Redmond is also working closely with the contractor’s insurance company.

Individuals who would like to begin the claims process for losses as a result of service interruption are asked to contact Redmond’s risk management office at (425) 556-2188.

“The city is working to streamline the process for businesses and individuals who need to file claims,” said Marchione. “It is our priority to ensure our community resumes regular operations as quickly as possible.”

De Boldt previously said IMCO will still be in charge of the stormwater project and its crew will be closely monitored.