Globe reiterates request to DPWH for cooperation to avoid fiber cut incidents which disrupt telco services

Telecom services in some parts of Northern Luzon, Mindanao affected by DPWH activities

Globe Telecom reiterates its earlier and continuing request to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for cooperation to minimize, if not totally avoid, fiber cut incidents that often lead to disruption of telecommunication services in view of two separate incidents which caused the loss of Globe mobile services and affected broadband and enterprise circuits in some parts of Northern Luzon and Mindanao last week.

On May 21, a Globe underground fiber was damaged due to DPWH soil testing at Agua Grande, Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte, thereby, impacting Globe customers in Cagayan, Apayao, Kalinga, Quirino, Nueva Vizcaya, Cauayan City, and Tuguegarao.

The following day, some parts of Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga Sibugay, Pagadian, Zamboanga del Sur, Zambaoanga del Norte, and Misamis Occidental also suffered service interruption after a Globe underground fiber was hit by a backhoe during pile driving activity of DPWH at Butadon Bridge, Kapatagan, Lanao del Norte.

According to Globe General Counsel Froilan Castelo:  “The growing incidence of fiber cuts is getting to be a major concern for us and we would like to appeal to DPWH and their contractors to be extra cautious in the execution of their projects to avoid recurrence of accidental cuts and damage to our cable facilities.”

Network disruptions caused by fiber cut incidents adversely impact not only the company’s operations but could also potentially affect delivery of government services including emergency response.  Globe provides access to both 911 and 8888, the government’s emergency and complaint hotline, respectively, as well as inbound and outbound SMS accessibility for 2286 (BATO), a text hotline for the public to directly report incidents to the Philippine National Police.

Globe continues to experience hundreds of cable cuts attributed to road-construction related activities undertaken by DPWH contractors.  Some of these cable incidents have led to major network disruption that affected call, text and internet services of Globe.  These incidents have forced Globe to file criminal and civil cases against the contractors.

Even barring major network disruptions, cable cut incidents cause at the very least poor quality of service delivery to consumers as well as additional repair costs to the company.