Telcos battle to maintain network coverage following Christchurch earthquake

2degrees, Chorus, Spark and Vodafone battled to maintain network coverage in Christchurch yesterday, after a magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck the city.

Felt widely around the South Island, as well as Wellington, the aftershock prompted network providers to assess fixed line networks for any damage.

Following an afternoon of assessments stretching into the evening, Chorus confirmed no network damage, which was backed up by an official statement to the media.

“Chorus has carried out a thorough assessment of its fixed line network following the 5.7 earthquake in Christchurch,” it read.

“The network is operating as normal however it will continued to be assessed to ensure there are no issues.

“Chorus’ Christchurch buildings are continuing to be assessed. No further updates are planned unless the situation changes.”

Over at Spark, the telco suffered outages in ten cites in the Christchurch area, advising Kiwis to “stick to data and text if you’re having trouble with voice.”

Confirming on social media at around 8pm on Sunday evening, Spark advised an “all clear” on its mobile network, alongside 2degrees which also claimed that its “network is up and running.”

All clear on the mobile network after the earthquake, thanks for bearing with us and we hope everyone is doing ok!
— Spark (@SparkNZ) February 14, 2016

Meanwhile, the Vodafone network was not impacted by the earthquake, and was “operating normally.”

“Our technicians will continue to monitor everything to make sure you are fully able to contact family and friends,” a Vodafone statement confirmed.

“We sent our Christchurch call centre teams home to be with their families and diverted calls to other call centres.

“Our retail stores closed early so the buildings or shopping centres could be assessed. They have been given the all clear and all retail outlets will be open for business tomorrow.”

More updates to follow…