March 2nd 2010 - Digicel Helps Raise Tsunami alert across the Pacific

Digicel worked with Governments to raise early warning alert for Pacific Islanders

 Working closely with the relevant Government Agencies in Vanuatu, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and Nauru, Digicel issued SMS Tsunami warning alerts to hundreds of thousands of Pacific Islanders.

The experience in Samoa, one of the countries considered to be at risk in the region, was typical of how Digicel worked in helped to spread the important warning message:  

Digicel Samoa, as a partner to the Samoa Disaster Management Office (DMO), provides SMS notification to key agencies, Hotels, Village Pastors and Mayors across the islands in times of emergency.

Throughout the weekend Digicel kept in close contact with the DMO’s Principal Disaster Management Officer, Filomena Nelson, who at 3.30am on Saturday morning (local time) authorized a Digicel SMS Alert to help notify the public that the Tsunami warning was in effect. 

Digicel’s 24 hour Customer Care team served as an information hot-line throughout the weekend despite having to relocate operations from their office near the coast to the home of Digicel’s CEO on higher ground.  The customer care team worked through the early hours of the morning to help relay the latest Government information and to ensure customers were able to keep in touch with their families and friends at this critical time.

 To the relief of all concerned Digicel was asked to issue a cancellation message to all customers at 10.36am on Saturday morning and staff were back at Digicel HQ by 12pm.   Digicel’s network in Samoa, and across its six markets in the Pacific reported significant increases in traffic throughout the hours of the alert as families and friends kept in contact throughout the region.

SMS Tsunami Alerts were issued in the following Digicel Pacific markets
Digicel Fiji
Digicel Vanuatu (English & Bishlama)
Digicel Samoa
Digicel Tonga
Digicel Nauru