Some residents in Ellis County were without landline phone service temporarily because of a break in an AT&T/Verizon fiber optic line, officials said.

Residents in Ferris, Bristol, Palmer and Wilmer were asked to call the Ellis County Sheriff’s Department from their cellphones in case of emergencies, Lt. James Saulter said.

The interruption to service was noticed about noon Friday.

The line was cut somewhere between Ferris and Palmer and was caused by a construction contractor, an AT&T spokesman said.

The phone service was restored by about 5 p.m.