The payphone in Mapoon could not be used during the outage. Photo: Supplied.
Cape York residents were left without phone service – and unable to phone triple zero for emergency help – during an outage which lasted for more than a day.
Mapoon Aboriginal Shire Council CEO Chad King contacted the Cape York Weekly and said the outage began about 5 pm on Saturday (8 August).
“This isn’t just inconvenient, but is a matter of life and death,” he said on Sunday afternoon.
“Mobile coverage is currently down across Mapoon, Weipa, Napranum and Aurukun. This includes Telstra (our only provider) and Optus in Weipa.
“Triple zero is down in Mapoon because we only have mobile coverage (no fixed line service).”
Mr King said Mapoon had one payphone outside the town’s health clinic, but it relied on 4G and was also down.
“Council has switched on free Wi-Fi outside our council office to provide some emergency connectivity using Starlink but Mapoon needs better digital connectivity,” he said.
Telstra says fire damaged infrastructure and caused the lengthy outage. Photo: File.
A Telstra spokesperson said a bushfire near Weipa damaged a network pit and cable on Saturday afternoon.
“Due to the remote location, a specialist crew travelled from Cairns early yesterday (Sunday), arriving by 3 pm to repair the cable and restore services,” they said.
“For areas like this where our mobile network is not available, Telstra Satellite Messaging allows Telstra customers with eligible plans and compatible devices to send and receive text messages or use select apps like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and Google Maps – ideal for regional and remote areas.
“Using Starlink’s Direct to Cell satellite network, compatible devices automatically seek a satellite connection when outdoors with a direct line or sight to the sky.
“We thank the local community for their patience while our crews worked to restore connectivity as quickly and safely as possible.”
Service was restored about 10 pm on Sunday.
Mr King said more needed to be done to improve communication infrastructure in his region.
“Despite Closing the Gap Target 17 seeking to improve digital connectivity, Mapoon is going backwards on this front,” he said.
“The decommissioning of the copper network alienated a huge portion of the community from basic phone services, let alone internet connectivity.
“Public policy assumed mobile services would make up the balance, however, the closure of 3G shrunk the extent of the community that can receive signal to only the immediate town centre and some patchy areas.
“When the tower is working, data speeds are slow. This is because the community and our tourists are supported only by a single phone tower which relies on a microwave relay link back to Weipa.
“Council is therefore advocating for a fibre optic connection to the National Broadband Network on par with the rest of the country.”
Were you affected by the service outage? Did you have trouble phoning triple zero for help? Email [email protected]
Original Article published by Luke Mortimer on Cape York Weekly.
