ISLAMABAD- The only country in the world which could not access theinternet to get updates on a damaged undersea cable in Atlantic Ocean wasMauritania. It was because of the damage itself that the country on thewestern coast of Africa lost internet connection for two days in what isbeing highlighted as the vulnerability of undersea internet cables.
According to a report in the UK’s The Independent, a part of the17,000-kilometer cable system running from France to South Africa gotdamaged. The system provides internet access to 22 countries and whilesurfers in most of the countries on the western coast experiencedoutages, Mauritania was the worst hit with lines being down for 48 hours.
Called the submarine cable from a company called African Coast to Europe(ACE), the system is the sole internet provider in Mauritania. The countryplunged to digital darkness when the fault occurred. Other countries likeSierra Leone, Liberia, Gambia, Guinea, Senegal, Benin and Ivory Coast alsosuffered although to varying extent.
Although the fault was rectified eventually, initial investigations haverevealed that a fishing vessel may have ruptured the line when it loweredits machinery into the sea. The matter is being probed further.