Major internet disruptions have plagued East and South Africa since a critical subsea fiber-optic cable was cut on Sunday, May 14th, 2024. This outage follows a similar incident in March 2024, highlighting the region’s dependence on a vulnerable undersea cable network.
What Happened?
- A major undersea cable connecting East Africa to the internet experienced a fault, disrupting internet services across the region.
- Network providers like Safaricom activated backup systems to minimize downtime, but users reported significant speed reductions and outages.
- The outage also affects South Africa due to the severed connection between the two regions.
Cause of the Outage:
- Initial reports suggest the fault occurred on the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) cable, located 45km north of Durban, South Africa.
- The situation is further complicated by pre-existing, unrepaired cuts in three additional subsea cables in the Red Sea.
Impact on Users:
- Internet users in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Malawi, Mozambique, and Madagascar are experiencing disruptions.
- Slower connection speeds, limited access to websites, and potential outages are being reported.
Repair Timeline:
- Unfortunately, there is no official information available yet regarding the repair timeline for the EASSy cable.
- As with previous outages, repairs can take anywhere from a few days to several weeks depending on the severity of the damage and logistical challenges.
- Once the necessary permits are secured and the cable faults are located, repairs can often be completed in several days. However, because cable repair ships are something of a scarce resource, there is often a delay to both engage a vessel and for it to travel to the area where the cable damage occurred, whether from its baseport or the location of a previous repair. However, in this case that delay may be comparatively short, as submarine cable industry observer @philBE2 predicts “Expecting the usual suspect, CS Leon Thevenin, now moored in Cape Town, to be swiftly mobilized for an expeditious repair mission…”
Looking Ahead:
- Telecommunication companies are working to restore services by:
- Utilizing backup systems and rerouting data through alternative cables connecting East Africa to Europe.
- Repairing the damaged EASSy cable as quickly as possible.
Staying Updated:
- Techspace Africa will continue to monitor the situation and update this article with the latest information on the repair timeline and service restoration progress.
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