Tonga has seen its connectivity restored as its international subsea cable was repaired after a volcanic eruption last month caused a communications blackout.
The cable between Tonga and Fiji had multiple faults and breaks due to the volcanic activity taking two weeks to repair. Although this cable has been repaired the domestic cable is still down meaning there’s no communication on the island of Vava’u, but service is expected to be restored this week.
The operator’s technical team has set up the satellite link to restore connectivity for Ha’apai Island.
Digicel Tonga said in a statement it was the first operator to restore international call service through a satellite link and help from Telstra, Spark, SES and NOVELSAT.
Digicel Tonga CEO Anthony Seuseu said: “We are delighted to see that our customers are connected to the outside world again and we want to thank you for your patience. Our customers can now connect with friends and family, do their online business with international partners, surf and stream the internet seamlessly and enjoy movies, music, sport, and more on their smart devices.”
The chief executive also noted the recent incident has shone light on where the operator needs to increase investment and network optimisations, and to plan better for future unpredicted events.
