HALIFAX - Cellphone users in parts of Atlantic Canada are reporting service is returning to normal after a widespread communications outage today.

The interruptions to service hampered emergency lines, airports and other networks and services.

Bell says the "major service outage" in Atlantic Canada hit internet, T-V, cellphones and landlines.

Flights were delayed at many airports while some consumers found it impossible to use debit or credit cards.

A spokesman for Bell said just after 4 p.m. local time that "services were back on line."

The company says the outage was caused by accidental damage to "multiple fibre network links."

A Bell map indicated outages in Halifax, St. John's, N.L., Saint John, N.B., Prince Edward Island, and Fredericton, among other places.

The outages weren't confined to Bell, with Telus confirming it is also down: "We're currently investigating a network issue affecting mobility customers in the East."

Some internet service was also affected.

According to social media reports, Eastlink service was available in at least some areas.

Cpl. Dal Hutchinson of the RCMP in Nova Scotia said that its 911 service was working, depending on what cellular phone was being used to call in.