Internet Outrage in Pakistan
Users of the Internet all over Pakistan faced a major internet outage on Friday morning after a major internet service provider in the country experienced "technical faults" in its transmission.
Owing to flooding and heavy downpours the service experienced faults which were rectified late on Friday.
The spokesperson of Pakistan Telecommunications Limited (PTCL) said that the faults that occurred because of flooding and heavy rains have been fixed.
It has also been confirmed by the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) that the problems have been solved and internet services all over the country have been restored.
They, furthermore, added that disrupted cellular services in Southern Balochistan owing to floods have also been restored.
The users of the Internet morning took to social media platforms, ostensibly connected via data packages to report that internet services from Pakistan Telecommunications Limited (PTCL) were non-responsive on Friday.
Users from across Pakistan reported the outage with work in offices and those at home both reporting the outage.
The issue was serious enough for the telecommunications regulator, Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) to take notice of the matter as well and launch an investigation.
Meanwhile, PTCL verified that its services had been disrupted.
In a statement, the company said that its optical fibre network was experiencing “technical difficulties” in the wake of heavy rains and floods in northern and central parts of the country.
A PTCL spokesperson said that their teams were working to restore the network on priority.
Later in the day, the spokesperson said that they have fixed the issue caused by floods and rains and that services have started normalizing.
The official added that the optical fiber had been damaged from three separate places which is being addressed.
Islamabad-based internet service provider also reported degradation of services.
Another national internet service provider, StormFiber also noted the degradation in service.
Soon, #internetdown started trending on the internet with people sharing memes to express how they felt about the situation.
Some people attributed the outage to a submarine cable fault, which is the most common reason for internet service degradation and outages. However, this time, the reasons are rains and floods.
One user complained that he works remotely and his boss in the US does not believe him when he tells him that the internet is down in Pakistan.
Another user asked if services were down in and around Lahore and Gujranwala
For some though, the internet services continued working:
Sindh emergency service issues ‘emergency numbers’
Owing to the breakdown in services by PTCL, the lines operated by the Sindh Integrated Emergency and Health Services (SIEHS) have also been affected, including 1122, 1021, 1036, and 1123.
As a result SIEHS issued on Friday a set of emergency and telehealth services for the public to seek help.
People seeking help can call the following numbers:
| City | Emergency Number |
|---|---|
| Karachi | 0313-0114150 |
| Hyderabad | 0312-7772765 |
| Thatta | 0312-7772765 |
| Sujawal | 0312-7772765 |
| Larkana | 0312-7772765 |