Govt's MainData Cable Severed / Fixed
Communication services for several governmentdepartments were quickly restored Wednesday, 17 January, aftertrenching operators working for a utilities company accidentallysevered government's main data cable.
Staff of the Computer Services Departmentpinpointed the break to the cable, located outside the GovernmentAdministration Building, shortly after reporting to work at 8:30a.m. Wednesday, said the department's Deputy Director Wesley Howell.
The problem disrupted the high-speed networkalso known as gigabit Ethernet, which connects ten major governmentsbuildings and provides fast, secure and efficient data communicationservice. Computer Services manages the network, Mr. Howell explained.
Affected were customers in the departmentsof Education, Fire, Immigration, Public Works, Vehicle and EquipmentServices, Environmental Health and Environment, as well as thosein the National Archive, Post Office Sorting Centre, Customs warehouseand airport offices, and the Mosquito Research and Control Unit.
Mr. Howell said that operators from ABCTrenching Service inadvertently severed the cable while conductingnetwork expansion for Cable and Wireless. Once contacted, Cableand Wireless and ABC staff rapidly responded to assist ComputerServices with the fitting of a new section of fibre-optic cable.
By 12:30 p.m. two of Computer Services'technical experts, John Hydes and Clemence Spence, began the precisetask of fusing the new cable section in place. And, by 2:30 p.m. only six hours after the break was discovered allof the affected departments were back on line. "Had it notbeen for the expertise of Computer Services staff and the availabilityof equipment and spare supplies, it could have taken days to repair,"Mr. Howell acknowledged.
He noted that sudden outages such as thisare costly and very inconvenient for government customers, andas a precaution Computer Services plans to install equipment thatwill create a communication "ring."
"This will allow the data network toseamlessly survive a cut in any one location," he said, addinghe expects the new equipment to be installed by February 2002.