World · Singapore Bureau
Singtel-backed Optus apologises for Australian outage affecting emergency services
A 76-minute network disruption across parts of Australia prevented some residents from making emergency calls. The outage affected Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory.
LSN Singapore ·
Optus, the Australian telecommunications company owned by Singapore Telecommunications Limited, has issued an apology following a service outage that disrupted emergency calling capabilities in multiple states. The technical glitch lasted approximately an hour and 16 minutes, impacting emergency services accessibility across four Australian jurisdictions.
The outage affected regions in Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory during the incident. Customers in these areas were unable to reach emergency services through the affected network, raising significant concerns about public safety during the disruption period.
Optus acknowledged responsibility for the service failure and expressed regret to those impacted by the outage. The company stated it was investigating the causes of the technical malfunction that led to the emergency calling disruption.
The incident highlights vulnerabilities in telecommunications infrastructure and the critical importance of maintaining reliable network services for emergency communications. Optus, which operates as a major telecommunications provider in Australia and is part of Singtel's regional portfolio, faces scrutiny over service reliability following the disruption.
The company's investigation into the root cause of the outage will be closely monitored by Australian regulators and communications authorities responsible for overseeing network performance standards in the country.