Technicians fixing Yukon fibre line pause work after high winds create unsafe conditions

Technicians working to fix a fibre line connected to the Yukon have had to stop working after shifting winds created unsafe fire conditions late Satruday afternoon, Northwestel says.

“We’re in a bit of a holding pattern right now,” said Tammy April, Northwestel’s vice-president of customer relations.

Technicians had been working to repair the line north of Fort Nelson, B.C. and had expected to have it finished by end of day Saturday.

April said technicians made “significant strides” and only need a short of amount of time to fix the line, once conditions allow.

She also said some Northwestel customers have limited access to services, but  fibre and long-distance calling are down.

Wildfires around Fort Nelson B.C. and Fort Liard N.W.T.  caused widespread telecommunications outages in Yukon and parts of N.W.T.  — including 911 emergency services outages.

Northwestel first announced outages on Friday night.

Damaged infrastructure in the N.W.T. causing intermittent internet outages in many communities is being fixed remotely, April said.

Cable internet restored in Whitehorse

Cable internet service has been restored for most of Whitehorse, but customers should expect some congestion, Northwestel said in an update Saturday afternoon. 

“Technicians are on site at one of the damaged infrastructure areas and actively working to splice and repair fibre. This work is critical for service to be fully restored in Yukon and northern BC. Our technicians will continue to work as long as it is safe to do so,” the update said. 

Workers also remain on standby to fix a separate damages location in the Mackenzie Valley and Beaufort Delta areas of N.W.T.

“At this time, there is no ETA for this restoration,” the update said.

As of Saturday morning, the telecom provider confirmed that cell service, long-distance landline calls, and internet were still down in Yukon, Northern B.C., and the Beaufort Delta and Mackenzie Delta regions of N.W.T.

Long distance calling in Nunavut is also down.

Yukon’s emergency management organization also told CBC that all cell phone and internet service was down across the territory.

In N.W.T., residents of many communities including Fort Liard and Jean Marie River were reporting that internet, cell phone, and landline services were down.

In Hay River, N.W.T. officials say that Northwestel internet is also down. Northwestel landlines are down for calls outside of the community. Cell service is unaffected.

How to get help

911 emergency services are also down in much of N.W.T. and Yukon.

Some landline 911 calling still works in Whitehorse, but if people can’t get help, people can go to the ambulances stationed at:

• Canada Games Centre

• Kwanlin Mall/Independent

• PetroOne/Integra Fuel in Port Creek

• Whistle Bend roundabout

• Rest stop at the top of South Access/Robert Service Way

• Security guards at Superstore, Cornerstone building at 7th on Main

• Yukon Inn front desk Sirius security patrol vehicles from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.

During the outage, N.W.T. residents can reach RCMP at 867-765-8337. Residents who can’t reach emergency services by phone should go to their local RCMP detachment or health centre.

Yukon’s Emergency Management Organization held a briefing about the telecommunications outages in Whitehorse on Saturday morning. (Cheryl Kawaja/CBC)

Yellowknife officials say residents there can call temporary cell numbers in case of an emergency for both fire and ambulance services: 867-688-0462 and 867-686-3653.

In Hay River, residents can access fire and ambulance services at this number for now: 867-874-9333.

Inuvik residents should contact the local fire department at 867-678-5379 in case of emergencies. The fire department will then refer calls through to RCMP or ambulance services if needed. Residents can also get help at the local RCMP detachment.