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Updated, 16:36
MILLIONS OF INTERNET users in East Africa have seen their connection speeds suffer after an undersea fibre optic cable connecting the continent to high-speed services in Europe and the Middle East were accidentally severed.
The cable was damaged when a ship dragged its anchor across a major cable running between Djibouti and Zimbabwe, as it sailed into the Kenyan port of Mombasa on Saturday.
The cables is owned by public-private TEAMS consortium including the Kenyan government – and could take up to three weeks to repair.
Because the region is so reliant on a small number of cables – with just three major undersea lines bringing fast internet connections to the region – the outage crippled data connections in a number of East African countries.
The Wall Street Journal says the TEAMS cable had already been seeing a larger-than-usual workload – as it was carrying the traffic which would otherwise have been carried on three smaller cables which themselves had been severed since February 17.
In that incident, a cargo ship is thought to have dragged its anchor across a number of cables including one run by the EASSy consortium – though EASSy says the cut did not impact many of its customers, and that traffic was rerouted using ‘in-built redundancy in its network’.
EASSy said one of the other two smaller cables, which were used by its customers for connections to Europe, is due to be repaired by March 12.
The BBC says that in the meantime, the traffic from the cable has been rerouted through a third high-speed cable, the SEACOM, which runs between Europe, South Africa and India, while engineers work on repairing the two severed cables.
In the meantime, however, the volume of traffic on the third cable is so great that domestic and mobile broadband users across several have seen significant decreases in connection speeds.
Edit: This piece has been updated to reflect the significantly lesser severity of the damage to the EASSy cable. We are happy to correct and acknowledge this.
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I feel sorry for this lad. While he may have the silver spoon in his mouth, he will always be in his brothers shadow. 5 in line for a throne he will never sit in. Can’t have a normal life, and press treats him like a joke. Hope he meets a nice girl and starts a family of his own. He needs some positive limelight.
He does seem like a genuinely nice chap.
“There’s a process one has to follow” that a nice way of putting it. What he means is he is not legally allowed to marry without the permission of his grandmother and the government of the day. Any prospective Bride better be prepared to have every microsecond of their life investigated and their entire families lives by the secret service followed by a full medical to make sure they are fertile.
Ladys it’s not all tiaras and dresses.
One does doesn’t one
He shouldn’t be too concerned about being shunted from 4th to 5th in line to the Throne. He’s only one DNA test away from being shunted into oblivion.
He was DNA tested – and the official results were that Charles has a bit of ginger in him – to put it one way …
He’ was a lovely lad as well when he was piloting an armed helicopter in Afghanistan on behalf of his Grandmother (his own words – not the british people and not England ) blowing foreign men women and children to bits !
Henry Tudour 8th. was called Prince Harry as well – Historical fact – he was seen as a fine example of what was best in the world at the time !
Look at how he turned out when he got too much power …..
An awful difference between being a Prince and being King it would seem !
Why would you feel sorry for him? he has it handy, no pressure of king or all that bs, imagine if William was caught in Vegas naked with a heap of chicks, the public would of had a very different opinion, Harry dose it and everyone thinks he’s the best thing since sliced bread. I’m speaking on behalf of the British public, I’m Irish I couldn’t really give a toss what either of them do. Seem like likeable lads all the same
Sure he already has a kid. Jacinta up the road from me swears that her youngest girl Rihanna Daenerys the III is his. The kid is the spitting image of Harry but with pigtails, so she might be telling the truth
Time to get out the Sunday knickers and the war paint girls
Typical. *English* journalist asking idiotic questions. The kids in the school at Halfmoon Bay asked really cool questions, eg “What do you call your grandmother slash Queen?”
“Typical. *English* journalist”?
Uh, it was one of the kids who asked him that…
Sorry didn’t read that fully – the journalistic questions are no better than any interview I’ve seen done with him. And surely being in New Zealand, it would have been a local journo?
Yes. English, not a local Kiwi. That’s why it stood out. Embarrassing. Here he is, having a brilliant time, including a raucous pub quiz, and a foolish English woman asks about marriage and family. Totally out of context.
Prince Harry is 30 years old already!!? … now I feel like an ancient relic – thanks for that!
Yes please!
For some reason I am reminded of Anne Boylen ….
The ‘process’ may involve the following – Vegas, hot tub, playmates of the month, feather duster etc
He wants kids but there is “a process one has to go through “..
Sounds like they aren’t to good at sex ed in Windsor
His brother has two children. The Queen has four. His father has two. His aunt has two and his uncles have two children each.
I think they have it covered.
“His father has two”
Assuming you’re talking about Charles, the jury is still out on that one.
No it’s not.
You are aware that Diana admitted to having an affair with a ginger chap who Harry is the image of.
Hewitt
A DNA test was carried out by the News of the World in 2003 and the result proved that Hewitt wasn’t the father. If it did show that it was hewitt then you could be sure that the News of the World would have blown that story across the world
If you look at Harry, he has Charles’ eyes.
Have to love that Guy! Wouldn’t it have been gas if had told the kids that he called her Queenie instead of Granny!
I know lots of others who would love to get married too. They’re same sex couples and all they want is equality. Vote yes! Let’s get it over the line!
Whats the rush Harry…….
Would you want James Hewitt as a father in law .
Born (and inbred) into unimaginative riches whilst millions in his own country live below the poverty line.
I’m sure all the people who worry about being blue to feed their kids would swap with him.
The whole idea of a royal family should be cast down to history like the colonial actions of his own relatives.
Time to get out the Sunday knickers and the war paint girls
“There’s a process?” Swoon, that’s what I dreamt my prince would say! Very disney
Wouldn’t you love if he started selling his sperm for a £1 a go. That would put a spanner in the works for all this ‘fifth in line’, ‘royal blood’ bullsh!t.
A process? Yes it’s called taking off yer trousers ffs
No use taking off his trousers if he marries a man though.
I believe the term is taking of one’s trousers – although rumour has it that Buckingham is quite fond of pantaloons to this day !
Shows what you know, Paul.
“There’s a process?” Swoon, it’s what I dreamt my prince would say. Very disney
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