Cut cable downs telco's network in Vis-Min

A severed fiber optic cable has caused service interruptions in the operations of Globe Telecom in the Visayas and Mindanao regions, preventing users from sending text messages, making calls, and surfing the Internet, a company spokesperson said. Provinces such as Agusan (del Norte and del Sur), Davao, and Cebu were among the ones affected with a blanket service interruption. Charo Logarta-Lagamon, external affairs head of the corporate communications division of Globe, confirmed in a phone interview that a cut in one of the company's undersea fiber cables caused the outage. Logarta, however, stressed that these cables are not ordinarily seen hanging on lamp posts, where electric cables are typically found. "These cables are either under the sea or in remote areas, which is very hard to get to," she clarified. In a TV interview with On Call on GMA News TV, Globe spokesperson Yoly Crisanto said some parts of Luzon may also be affected by the cut. Crisanto, however, did not specify where the fiber cut occured, or what directly caused the problem, as they are still investigating the matter. She said she cannot assure if the cut is caused by the tropical storm currently pummelling Luzon and some parts of Visayas. "There are still no details to arrive at that conclusion," she said. Crisanto assured, however, that service will be restored in the affected areas soon. "There is an ongoing restoration, it will not take until the end of this day," she said. She said service will be restored in the affected areas once redirection of traffic to their redundant cable connections have been finalized. Late last week, rival telecom company Smart Communications suffered a similar outage in its network, preventing users from sending text messages, or having their prepaid credits disappear without using them. The company, however, did not disclose the cause of the outage, nor where it specifically occurred. — TJD, GMA News