CABLE INNOVATOR

General information

Course/Position

Latest news

Repair of damaged fiber optic cable underway

On Sep 9 the 'Cable Innovator' was at work in the Salisbury Sound 25 miles north of Sitka, mending a broken fiber optic cable that took Sitka offline in late August, but it could be close to a week until repairs have been finished. The GCI, Sitka’s primary internet and cellular service provider. is part of a professional service group that allows for these repair ships to become available in the rare event of a break. The fiber repair shift was mobilized to get to Sitka and arrived on site over the weekend, of Sep 7/8. The break occurred in a stretch of fiber optic cable between Sitka and Angoon in Salisbury Sound. The cause of the problem was still unknown. The repairs should be completed by the end of the week. Meanwhile, the company has restored basic internet and cell service using a combination of satellite and microwave technology. Report with photo: https://www.kcaw.org/2024/09/09/repair-ship-working-to-mend-cable-break-that-took-sitka-offline/

Cable layer underway to Sitka to repair a damaged undersea fiber optic cable

The 'Cable Innovator' is en route to Sikra to repair a damaged undersea fiber optic cable that has disrupted telecommunications and internet since Aug 29, 2024. The ship stopped at Victoria, British Columbia, on Sep 4 to load materials for the repair job. It should arrive by the end of the week. The Alaska telecom firm GCI has confirmed no other details about the incident – neither the location of the break nor how it may have occurred. GCI stated it could not be more specific about the incident until the 'Cable Innovator' has arrived on scene, and repairs are underway.

Allision in Victoria

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) has deployed a team of investigators to Victoria, British Columbia, where the "Cable Innovator" struck a dock while berthing on Nov 22, 2018, at 1.15 a.m. The ship was coming from Port Angeles and remained berthed at Ogden Point since. The TSB intended to gather information and assess the occurrence.