Cap'n Bubba the marine backhoe driver - SEA-ME-WE 3 and 4, FLAG cut

Fri Dec 19 17:17:57 UTC 2008

On Dave Farber's IP list.

>
> From: France Telecom / Press <infos.group at orange-ftgroup.com>
> To: France Telecom / Press <infos.group at orange-ftgroup.com>
> Subject: Three undersea cables cut: traffic greatly disturbed between
> Europe and Asia/Near East zone
> Date: Fri, 19 Dec 2008 17:09:03 +0100 (CET)
> X-Concentric-MX-Info: s=0AKNHR84D300:1 ts=0 td=53 dt=0 tro=1 tra=2
> trb=1 sro=1 sra=2 ic=0
> X-Concentric-DKIM: SigStatus="No signature", PolSusp="No",
> PolTest="No", Policy="none", Handling="none"
> X-Virus-Status: No
>
> If you can't read this email, please go to : http://www.orange.com/en_EN/press/press_releases/cp081219en.html
> Paris, December 19, 2008
> Three undersea cables cut: traffic greatly disturbed between Europe and
> Asia/Near East zone
>
> 3 cables cut this morning (Sea Me We3 partly + Sea Me We4 + FLAG)
> France Telecom Marine cable ship about to depart
>
> France Telecom observed today that 3 major underwater cables were cut:
> ?Sea Me We 4? at 7:28am, ?Sea Me We3? at 7:33am and FLAG at 8:06am.
> The causes of the cut, which is located in the Mediterranean between
> Sicily and Tunisia, on sections linking Sicily to Egypt, remain
> unclear.
>
> Most of the B to B traffic between Europe and Asia is rerouted through
> the USA.
> Traffic from Europe to Algeria and Tunisia is not affected, but traffic
> from Europe to the Near East and Asia is interrupted to a greater or
> lesser extent (see country list below).
> Part of the internet traffic towards R?union is affected as well as 50%
> towards Jordan.
> A first appraisal at 7:44 am UTC gave an estimate of the following
> impact on the voice traffic (in percentage of out of service capacity):
> -    Saudi Arabia: 55% out of service
> -    Djibouti: 71% out of service
> -    Egypt: 52% out of service
> -    United Arab Emirates: 68% out of service
> -    India: 82% out of service
> -    Lebanon: 16% out of service
> -    Malaysia: 42% out of service
> -    Maldives: 100% out of service
> -    Pakistan: 51% out of service
> -    Qatar: 73% out of service
> -    Syria: 36% out of service
> -    Taiwan: 39% out of service
> -    Yemen: 38% out of service
> -    Zambia: 62% out of service
>
> France Telecom immediately alerted one of the two maintenance boats
> based in the Mediterranean area, the ?Raymond Croze?. This France
> Telecom Marine cable ship based at Seyne-sur-Mer has received its
> mobilization order early this afternoon and will cast off tonight at
> 3:00 am with 20 kilometers spare cable on board. It should be on
> location on Monday morning for a relief mission.
> Priority will be given to the recovery of the Sea Me We4 cable, then on
> the Sea Me We3.
> By December 25th, Sea Me We4 could be operating. By December 31st, the
> situation should be back to normal.
>
>
> download all the press release
> press contactsLouis-Michel Aymard ? +33 1 44 44 93 93
> latest releasespress information and communication professionals