Internet outages in N.W.T. caused by damage to fibre optic cable, NorthwesTel says
Internet outages in the Northwest Territories on Friday were caused by damage to a fibre optic cable outside of Yellowknife, NorthwesTel says.
In an email on Saturday, the company told CBC News that the damage was caused by "third-party construction activity" around the fibre optic line that brings high-speed internet to Yellowknife and surrounding communities.
The result was hours-long internet outages in Yellowknife, Whatì, Behchokǫ̀ and Fort Providence, starting at about 1 p.m. on Friday afternoon and ending later that evening.
Phone service across the north was also impacted in the outage. Residents in the Northwest Territories reported dropped calls, and RCMP in Yukon and the Northwest Territories told residents to go to their local detachments if they needed help from police instead of calling 9-1-1.
NorthwesTel told CBC News it took crews about six hours to repair the damage to the fibre optic line once they identified the problem.
The company also said that all services, including phone services, are now back up.
