DMV offices expected to reopen Tuesday after Monday’s system outage

A sliced fiber optic cable in Las Vegas led the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles to close its offices Monday and make online services unavailable.

The outage occurred when a backhoe accidentally cut fiber optic cables at a construction site. The DMV is expected to be back open Tuesday after the vendor and state engineers rerouted traffic, which was expected to take a full day to correct, according to DMV spokesman Kevin Malone.

“I don’t know where in Las Vegas it’s located, but I do know NV Energy has to de-energize some power lines before the fiber cable can be repaired,” Malone said in an email.

The appointment system is slated to be back up Tuesday as well, as offices in Carson City, Henderson, Las Vegas and Reno will serve only customers who set an appointment in person. The appointment only protocol is aimed at eliminating lines that build up when those without appointments show up at DMV offices to carry out services.

“Appointments are the best way to ensure we are able to keep our customers and staff safe during this new era of social distancing,” said DMV Director Julie Butler in a statement. “But the basic instructions we have in place for our reopening haven’t changed. Visit our website first, use online services or kiosks if possible, and if you do have to come in, make sure you are prepared for a successful visit.”

Walk-in customers will now be directed to online services, kiosks or scheduled for an appointment.

Monday’s outage was unrelated to the state information technology department’s weekend upgrade of the DMV’s central computing equipment, used by most state agencies, Malone said.

The DMV was unable to process transactions or set new appointments Monday as it experienced the system outage.

The system issues came as the office kicked off its second week of operations following an almost three-month closure due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The DMV announced late last week it reopened its appointment setting system and that only customers with appointments would be seen in person.

This marks the second issue that’s hit the DMV following its reopening June 15, as a driver examiner tested positive for COVID-19, resulting in the suspension of driving skills tests Friday.

Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.