Internet Solutions (IS) says it is working to find an alternative connection after its primary international link, a 45MB connection to New York, was disrupted.
The 45MB line is connected to a point-of-presence which IS joint-MD Brett Dawson says is less than a kilometre from the World Trade Centre, which was destroyed in an terrorist attack yesterday.
The line terminates at a Telehouse facility which IS describes as one of the largest of its kind. Despite the isolation of the entire Manhattan area, IS says the facility is operating under emergency power and a second 34MB line terminating there is in operation.
"We know that the [45MB] circuit is fine from our side," says Dawson. "It is linked to the satellite ground station in the US, but somewhere between there and Telehouse there is a problem."
He says it is very likely that the connection was disrupted due to the disaster in New York, and that it is unlikely to be fixed in the near future.
"So many carriers, some of whom terminate in the World Trade Centre, and ISPs have been affected, European providers too," he says. "Everyone is looking for cables there, but the place is a war zone and people there are looking after their families right now."
The operational 34MB circuit lands in Cape Town, and IS says this has placed additional strain on the infrastructure between Johannesburg and Cape Town.
IS has a second 34MB circuit between Johannesburg and Europe in operation, and Dawson says the two links are congested but handling the load placed on them.
"Normally clients are unforgiving about outages, but in this case we have to thank our customers for being very understanding," he says.
IS is working on four alternative international connections and expects to have one operational within 48 hours.
UUNet and SAIX, both of which have circuits to New York, say they are unaffected as yet.
However, further disruptions may occur. IS considers the New York facility to be under threat, and solar activity during the spring equinox could lead to satellite outages for short periods.
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