Telecom Damage Hobbles Gulf Rigs

[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: John M. Biers john.biers@dowjones.com]
Six weeks after Hurricane Rita slammed ashore, key communications infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico remains offline. Half of the Gulf's microwave network remains down due to storm damage effecting cellular-phone service and high-end broadband connections. The telecom recovery since Katrina has been slowed by subsequent storms, first Hurricane Rita in late September, then Hurricane Wilma late last month. In the immediate aftermath of Rita, 85% of the microwave network was down. The eastern half of the Gulf is mostly restored, while most of the western half is down. The network is expected to return to full capacity by year's end. The telecom problems have been severe enough to prompt debate on how to upgrade the system. Telecommunications companies emphasize the need for greater diversity of systems and backup capacity.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB113131915844189550.html?mod=todays_us_page_one
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