OTTAWA — In the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian’s assault of Atlantic Canada earlier this month, which caused widespread telecom service outages throughout the region, the CRTC has a number of questions regarding the steps taken by carriers to restore service and improve network resiliency.
In a letter sent to Bell, Telus, Eastlink and Rogers on September 13, the CRTC requested the carriers provide detailed information regarding the major telecom disruptions their customers experienced as a result of Dorian’s path through Atlantic Canada.
“In recent days, various media outlets have reported on service outages affecting your customers after hurricane Dorian swept through the Atlantic region on 7 September 2019. According to these reports, customers were unable to connect to phone networks or had limited connectivity, and many indicated that they were left with no way to call for help or seek critical information,” the Commission wrote in its letter to the carriers.
The CRTC referred to media reports that said power outages impacted a number of wireless cell sites and other communication facilities, and also reported most cell phone towers are vulnerable to failure during extended power outages due to limited backup power.
“In exercising its powers and performing its duties under the Telecommunications Act, the Commission must implement the Canadian telecommunications policy objectives set out in section 7 of that Act, including to render reliable and affordable telecommunications services of high quality accessible to Canadians in both urban and rural areas in all regions of Canada,” the CRTC wrote.
Therefore, the Commission is requesting that the carriers provide the following information:
- Provide, by province, for each day between September 7 and September 16, 2019, a high-level estimate of the number of customers affected by outages of 24 hours or more caused by the hurricane, for each of their phone, mobile wireless, and Internet access services.
- Indicate the steps taken to date and plans to address any remaining service outages across the affected region.
- Describe the measures taken to inform their customers and the public of the situation affecting their network and recovery efforts.
- Describe any measures taken to improve network resiliency and recovery prior to this event and any measures, if any, planned for the future due to this event.
The CRTC has asked the letter recipients to provide comprehensive answers, including rationale and any supporting information. The carriers have been given until September 18 to respond.
