Boston manhole fire damaged fiber lines, disrupting Massachusetts court e-systems and forcing traffic changes downtown
What happened
A manhole fire in downtown Boston late January damaged underground utility infrastructure and triggered a chain of disruptions that reached well beyond the immediate area, affecting road access near key medical and government sites and interrupting electronic services used across the Massachusetts court system.
The fire broke out on Friday, January 30, 2026, near the intersection of Cambridge Street and Staniford Street, close to Bowdoin station and major government and hospital facilities. Utility crews and public safety personnel responded as the incident knocked out power for hundreds of customers and prompted significant traffic backups and road restrictions through the weekend and into the start of the workweek.
Impact on court operations
Damage to nearby fiber-optic lines created statewide problems for court technology, including difficulty accessing electronic court records and disruptions to electronic filing. By Monday, February 2, 2026, the Massachusetts Trial Court reported that MassCourts—the system used for court records access—had been restored, while the statewide e-filing service remained in a recovery process.
The outage highlighted the dependence of modern court operations on connectivity. Massachusetts courts use electronic filing for a wide range of case types and court departments, with certain filings required to be submitted electronically. When those systems become unavailable or unstable, attorneys, litigants, and court staff can face delays in submitting time-sensitive documents and retrieving case information needed for hearings and scheduling.
Traffic and public safety response
In the immediate aftermath, officials urged drivers to avoid a broad area around Cambridge Street, Staniford Street, Blossom Street, O’Connell Way, and nearby routes. The City of Boston reported that westbound Cambridge Street was closed from Staniford Street to Bowdoin Street due to a public safety emergency.
As work continued, traffic was reconfigured to maintain access to Massachusetts General Hospital and other critical infrastructure. Police later advised that two-way travel was operating on the outbound side of Cambridge Street and that turning movements at Joy Street were restricted to manage flow and preserve emergency access. Officials also warned that the altered patterns could affect travel tied to events at TD Garden.
Repair work and what was known by Feb. 2
Electric utility repairs to restore customer power were completed, but work affecting telecommunications and connectivity continued. The fiber damage remained central to the ongoing court-system disruptions, as agencies and contractors worked to restore stable service.
Key dates: Fire reported Friday, January 30, 2026; court-system disruptions continued into Monday, February 2, 2026.
Affected areas: Cambridge Street/Staniford Street vicinity; surrounding streets near City Hall, Bowdoin station, and Mass General.
Affected services: Power to local customers; fiber connectivity; electronic court records access and electronic filing.
Officials characterized the situation as a public safety emergency requiring street closures, reconfigured traffic, and ongoing utility work while connectivity-dependent services returned in stages.