Re: Cap'n Bubba the marine backhoe driver - SEA-ME-WE 3 and 4, FLAG cut

* Joel Esler · * Fri Dec 19 12:32:43 2008

I just posted an article about this on the Internet Storm Center, I
have reports pouring in there as well.
Joel
(http://isc.sans.org)
On Dec 19, 2008, at 12:17 PM, Suresh Ramasubramanian allegedly wrote:
If you can't read this email, please go to :http://www.orange.com/en_EN/press/press_releases/cp081219en.html

Paris, December 19, 2008

Three undersea cables cut: traffic greatly disturbed between Europe
and

Asia/Near East zone
3 cables cut this morning (Sea Me We3 partly + Sea Me We4 + FLAG)
France Telecom Marine cable ship about to depart
France Telecom observed today that 3 major underwater cables were
cut:

?Sea Me We 4? at 7:28am, ?Sea Me We3? at 7:33am and FLAG at 8:06am.

The causes of the cut, which is located in the Mediterranean between

Sicily and Tunisia, on sections linking Sicily to Egypt, remain

unclear.
Most of the B to B traffic between Europe and Asia is rerouted
through

the USA.

Traffic from Europe to Algeria and Tunisia is not affected, but
traffic

from Europe to the Near East and Asia is interrupted to a greater or

lesser extent (see country list below).

Part of the internet traffic towards R?union is affected as well as
50%

towards Jordan.

A first appraisal at 7:44 am UTC gave an estimate of the following

impact on the voice traffic (in percentage of out of service
capacity):

- Saudi Arabia: 55% out of service

- Djibouti: 71% out of service

- Egypt: 52% out of service

- United Arab Emirates: 68% out of service

- India: 82% out of service

- Lebanon: 16% out of service

- Malaysia: 42% out of service

- Maldives: 100% out of service

- Pakistan: 51% out of service

- Qatar: 73% out of service

- Syria: 36% out of service

- Taiwan: 39% out of service

- Yemen: 38% out of service

- Zambia: 62% out of service
France Telecom immediately alerted one of the two maintenance boats

based in the Mediterranean area, the ?Raymond Croze?. This France

Telecom Marine cable ship based at Seyne-sur-Mer has received its

mobilization order early this afternoon and will cast off tonight at

3:00 am with 20 kilometers spare cable on board. It should be on

location on Monday morning for a relief mission.

Priority will be given to the recovery of the Sea Me We4 cable,
then on

the Sea Me We3.

By December 25th, Sea Me We4 could be operating. By December 31st,
the

situation should be back to normal.

--
Joel Esler
ï  http://www.joelesler.net
[m]