Phone, internet service still out across Gabriola Island after cable downed in storm

UPDATE, Dec. 5, 2022: Phone and internet service have been fully restored on Gabriola Island, Telus said around 11 a.m. PT. 

Internet, landline and many mobile phone services have been out since Wednesday for thousands of residents on Gabriola Island. 

A cable that brings the services to the small island — which is a 20-minute ferry ride from Nanaimo, B.C. — was knocked down during this week's winter storm. 

Both Telus and Shaw say they have crews working on a repair, but there is no estimated time for restoration. 

In the meantime, the Gabriola Volunteer Fire Department and the Regional District of Nanaimo have set up an emergency station at the main fire hall. It started with emergency radios and 24/7 staff in case any of the island's 4,500 residents needed to reach 911 or communicate with Vancouver Island. 

The fire department has now also set up a satellite cell repeater from Telus that is broadcasting LTE service in a 1-2 kilometre radius, meaning the medical clinic, RCMP detachment and anyone in the island's main village can make phone calls and use data.

Telus also said it has reconfigured some nearby cell towers to provide better service to the island — which doesn't have total coverage even when everything is up and running. 

Vanessa Craig, who represents Gabriola on the board of the Regional District of Nanaimo, said people had been leaving home to try to make phone calls.

"Basically, we kind of drive around the island looking for a spot for cell, but many people don't even have cellphones," said Craig, who thanked the fire department for immediately leaping into action to offer communication support.

Business owners improvising

Business owners on the island are managing the outages as best they can.

Gloria Hatfield, who owns Pages Resort and Marina, which has several properties on the island, says she has the resort's main phone lines and four email accounts all routed to her phone — which, fortunately, has service. 

When she gets a reservation request, she goes to the resort's front desk and hands her phone to her staff there, who type out a response before handing it back.

"It's not perfect," said Hatfield, "but they're getting an answer to the call."

This is not the first time the island has lost phone and internet. In 2016, a barge carrying a large crane took down the line and it took several days for services to be fully restored.