Broken cable reportedly disconnected US island territory from Internet

An undersea, fiber-optic cable that supplies Internet connectivity to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) was reportedly cut more than 48 hours ago on July 7, taking tens of thousands of people offline. Access is being gradually restored to the US territory, located north of Guam in the western Pacific Ocean. IT&E, the primary telecommunications provider, said that "in the next 2 to 3 days, we’ll be able to provide a better timeline for the full restoration of services."

While IT&E attempts to fix the undersea cable, it has partially restored service by reviving an old microwave link. CNMI has a population of 53,833 according to 2010 Census data, primarily on the islands of Saipan, Rota and Tinian. CNMI has 14 islands in total. Saipan alone has a population of 48,220. IT&E said its crews had not identified the exact cause of the cable cut, "but indications are that this failure is a result of complications from the recent passing of Typhoon Chan-Hom, through the Marianas islands." While on-island communications were still possible, "all off-island communication is not possible." The cable also broke in 2008 when an underwater boulder rolled and snapped the cable.