Connectivity crisis: Telstra outage disrupts lives of regional residents for over a week
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In an age where connectivity is often taken for granted, the residents of one Aussie state have been given a stark reminder of how dependent we've become on our digital lifelines.
For more than a week, these communities have experienced significant disruptions as a major telecommunications outage affects mobile and internet services.
The outage has caused widespread inconvenience, impacting daily activities and communication.
Authorities are working to resolve the issue and are urging affected individuals to stay patient and informed while services are being restored.
Residents of a southern Western Australian country town and surrounding areas are seeking explanations from Telstra following an outage that disrupted internet and mobile services for over a week.
The 4G mobile outage left Wickepin, located 210 kilometres southeast of Perth, and nearby communities without electronic connectivity for eight days.
Telstra acknowledged the outage on September 25 and anticipated resolving the issue immediately.
Megan Henry, a resident of a farm near neighbouring Kulin, shared her distress of the significant impact of the outage.
‘We are in day eight of a blackout,’ she lamented.
‘It's affecting every part of our lives, from being out of contact from loved ones to running a business.’
‘We had a medical issue last week and our families could not connect at all to each other, which was really actually quite frightening,’ Ms Henry added.
According to Ms Henry, the issue had also affected her ability to work remotely from the farm.
‘No phone calls, no internet, no nothing. We can't do any payroll. We can't access any emails,’ she shared.
‘Our compliance for us being a school bus contractor is huge, and I've had to relocate for that.’
Simon Duckworth, another resident from Harrismith, south-east of Wickepin, echoed these sentiments.
‘We've generally got pretty good reception, but it's caused a fair bit of havoc over the last seven or eight days,’ he remarked.
Mr Duckworth noted that his wife's business, which operates from the farm, had been disrupted by the outage.
‘She forwent three days' work last week, and she had to go up to Kulin to work yesterday,’ he said.
‘She's driven up there again today just to get some semblance of reception.’
This isn't the first time regional Western Australians have faced such outages. Just three months prior, Dongara residents experienced a similar situation for a week.
A Telstra spokesperson has acknowledged the current issue, citing hardware problems at the Wickepin East and Traysurin sites.
‘We've ordered a new part to replace the faulty hardware, and we are estimating that it will be resolved later today,’ the spokesperson said on Tuesday, October 1.
‘We thank customers for their patience while we're working as quickly as possible to restore services.’
The prolonged disconnection has sparked outrage among the community, with WA's deputy opposition leader and Wickepin resident Steve Martin highlighting the severity of the situation.
‘I don't recall anything remotely close to this,’ he remarked.
‘If this was in the CBD of Perth and comms dropped out, we would see a rapid response. This impacts a small number of people, but it really impacts them.’
‘We use WhatsApp groups to let each other know what's going on—if there is smoke or if there's a fire at harvest.’
‘Regional people shouldn't have lesser services, particularly when it comes to comms,’ he argued.
The recent Telstra outage in Wickepin and its surrounding areas has left residents without mobile and internet services for over a week, causing significant disruptions to daily life and business operations.
This prolonged outage mirrors similar frustrations faced by Telstra customers across the country as reports emerge of other communities enduring extended service interruptions.
In one case, customers are being told to wait nine days for restoration, highlighting ongoing challenges and dissatisfaction with the telecommunications provider.
If you've been affected by the Telstra outage or have experienced similar issues in your area, we encourage you to share your story. How did you cope without mobile or internet services? What measures did you take to stay connected? Your experiences can shed light on the challenges faced by regional communities and help advocate for better services.
For more than a week, these communities have experienced significant disruptions as a major telecommunications outage affects mobile and internet services.
The outage has caused widespread inconvenience, impacting daily activities and communication.
Authorities are working to resolve the issue and are urging affected individuals to stay patient and informed while services are being restored.
Residents of a southern Western Australian country town and surrounding areas are seeking explanations from Telstra following an outage that disrupted internet and mobile services for over a week.
The 4G mobile outage left Wickepin, located 210 kilometres southeast of Perth, and nearby communities without electronic connectivity for eight days.
Telstra acknowledged the outage on September 25 and anticipated resolving the issue immediately.
Residents in Wickepin and nearby areas in southern WA have been without Telstra mobile and internet services for more than a week. Credit: Facebook / Telstra
Megan Henry, a resident of a farm near neighbouring Kulin, shared her distress of the significant impact of the outage.
‘We are in day eight of a blackout,’ she lamented.
‘It's affecting every part of our lives, from being out of contact from loved ones to running a business.’
‘We had a medical issue last week and our families could not connect at all to each other, which was really actually quite frightening,’ Ms Henry added.
According to Ms Henry, the issue had also affected her ability to work remotely from the farm.
‘No phone calls, no internet, no nothing. We can't do any payroll. We can't access any emails,’ she shared.
‘Our compliance for us being a school bus contractor is huge, and I've had to relocate for that.’
Simon Duckworth, another resident from Harrismith, south-east of Wickepin, echoed these sentiments.
‘We've generally got pretty good reception, but it's caused a fair bit of havoc over the last seven or eight days,’ he remarked.
Mr Duckworth noted that his wife's business, which operates from the farm, had been disrupted by the outage.
‘She forwent three days' work last week, and she had to go up to Kulin to work yesterday,’ he said.
‘She's driven up there again today just to get some semblance of reception.’
This isn't the first time regional Western Australians have faced such outages. Just three months prior, Dongara residents experienced a similar situation for a week.
A Telstra spokesperson has acknowledged the current issue, citing hardware problems at the Wickepin East and Traysurin sites.
‘We've ordered a new part to replace the faulty hardware, and we are estimating that it will be resolved later today,’ the spokesperson said on Tuesday, October 1.
‘We thank customers for their patience while we're working as quickly as possible to restore services.’
The prolonged disconnection has sparked outrage among the community, with WA's deputy opposition leader and Wickepin resident Steve Martin highlighting the severity of the situation.
‘I don't recall anything remotely close to this,’ he remarked.
‘If this was in the CBD of Perth and comms dropped out, we would see a rapid response. This impacts a small number of people, but it really impacts them.’
‘We use WhatsApp groups to let each other know what's going on—if there is smoke or if there's a fire at harvest.’
‘Regional people shouldn't have lesser services, particularly when it comes to comms,’ he argued.
The recent Telstra outage in Wickepin and its surrounding areas has left residents without mobile and internet services for over a week, causing significant disruptions to daily life and business operations.
This prolonged outage mirrors similar frustrations faced by Telstra customers across the country as reports emerge of other communities enduring extended service interruptions.
In one case, customers are being told to wait nine days for restoration, highlighting ongoing challenges and dissatisfaction with the telecommunications provider.
