:: Deepquest ::

A fire started by a homeless man knocked out service between Boston and New York on the experimental Internet2 network Tuesday night.the fire, which also disrupted service on the Red Line subway, started around 8:20 p.m. when a homeless man tossed a lit cigarette. The cigarette landed on a mattress, which ignited and led to a two-alarm fire.

Robb, who co-authors the Internet2 Network Upgrade blog, writes that Level 3 engineers estimate it could take one to two days to restore the circuit. Engineers are looking at rerouting a Chicago-to-New York OC-192 circuit that normally goes through Boston to Washington until service is restored.

Robb writes: “Question: When can a cigarette take down your network? Answer: When you throw it at a bridge and light it on fire.”