Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, W.I. -- September 15, 2004 -- Cable & Wireless, the leading provider of communications in the Caribbean, today announced that its networks continue to be operational in Grenada, Jamaica, The Cayman Islands and Turks & Caicos.
Though service is currently down in some areas, recent improvements to infrastructure, crisis management plans and a commitment to providing the best possible service in these markets have allowed most Cable & Wireless customers on these islands to remain connected to each other and the outside world.
In Jamaica, the Cable & Wireless fixed network remained largely intact and functional except for one major exchange that had to be shutdown because of flooding and threat of damage to the equipment.
The company’s mobile network also remained virtually damage-free and most of the limited number of cell sites that were affected went down because of the loss of the public electricity supply. Internet service which was uninterrupted during and immediately after the hurricane was disrupted after the hurricane damaged cables in the vicinity of the Cayman Islands.
A Cable & Wireless technical team has now repaired the damaged cable and Internet service has been restored. In fact, to date, most reported service interruptions have resulted from a lack of electricity or flooding, not actual damage to the company’s telecommunications infrastructure.
Nevertheless, to further facilitate communication on the island, Cable & Wireless also provided its customers with free text messaging for three days after the storm to ensure that everyone could share vital information about their location and status.
In Grand Cayman, which took an almost direct hit from Ivan, Cable & Wireless is the only wireless operator currently providing service to its customers.
Though many residents lost power in Turks & Caicos, Cable & Wireless’ fixed wire telephony, TDMA and GSM networks and ADSL service remained fully functional both during and after Hurricane Frances. Even in Grenada where Ivan caused extensive damage to the country’s infrastructure, Cable & Wireless Grenada has been able to keep much of its network operational with 25% of its TDMA and 50% of its GSM sites still functioning.
“We are proud that our networks throughout the region held up so well in the wake of these two devastating storms,” stated Len de Barros, COO of Cable & Wireless Caribbean. “However, we do understand that many residents don’t have telephone and other key services including power.
and water, as well as many basic necessities.
We are leveraging our people and resources throughout the Caribbean to restore full telephone service on these islands as quickly as possible and help provide food, water and shelter to those most affected.”
Cable & Wireless Leveraging Resources to Help Those Most Affected Cable & Wireless is working with local authorities to get much needed supplies to Grenada and Grand Cayman. The company has sent several shipments of supplies including food, water, tents, generators, clothing and mobile phones via air and sea from St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, Barbados, Anguilla and Miami to Grenada. Additional shipments of supplies for Grenada are planned for the coming weeks and the first shipments are expected to be sent to Grand Cayman this week. Members of the Cable 7 Wireless technical team in Grenada are also volunteering their time to help with the restoration effort.
CEO of Cable & Wireless PLC, Francesco Caio in a message to Caribbean staff, has given a commitment to assist in the rebuilding of local communities. “We will establish a relief fund to support the work that will take place in the months to come to help rebuild the communities our people live and work in across these islands.
The Group will launch the fund with an initial donation of US$1 million. I know many employees will also want to contribute, and we will communicate details of how to do so in the next few days.”
Services and Facilities Offered to Local Residents
Emergency response teams in Jamaica, The Caymans and Grenada to coordinate recovery efforts are also using Cable & Wireless’ networks. Where regular service is not available, the company is setting up portable equipment and providing handsets sent from neighboring islands to emergency teams for use in their rescue and recovery efforts. In Grenada, Cable & Wireless set up a local 800 number with a link into CBC 900, a local radio station that allows local Grenadians to transmit calls to loved ones throughout the island.
Prior to the storms hitting each country, Cable & Wireless facilities were also opened to the media and general public as shelters. These facilities were designed to withstand such hurricanes. The company also made it a point to keep the public apprised of the latest developments regarding the storm and its impact on service by issuing regular statements in Jamaica during and after Ivan.
About Cable & Wireless Cable & Wireless is one of the world's leading international communications companies. It provides voice, data and IP (Internet Protocol) services to business and residential customers, as well as services to other telecoms carriers, mobile operators and providers of content, applications and internet services.
Cable & Wireless' principal operations are in the United Kingdom, continental Europe, Asia, the Caribbean, Panama and the Middle East.
For more information about Cable & Wireless, go to
www.cw.com.
