BT, Intelsat and ITC
Global Donate
Emergency Satellite
Solutions to Support
NetHope’s Disaster
Recovery Efforts in
Vanuatu
13 April
2015
As communities in
the South Pacific
Islands of Vanuatu
grapple with major
devastation and
severe power and
communications
outages left in the
wake of Cyclone Pam,
Intelsat (NYSE: I),
BT Group (NYSE:
BT), and ITC Global
have donated
satellite capacity,
equipment and
manpower to help
restore critical
communication
networks across
Vanuatu.
Providing vital
broadband
connectivity to
humanitarian and
disaster relief
organizations
working on-site,
including NetHope,
BT is utilizing
capacity on Intelsat
18 located at 180°
East, linking via
the IntelsatOne®
terrestrial network
at Intelsat’s
Riverside,
California Teleport.
Satellite
communications
provides
near-instant
infrastructure,
allowing restoration
of communications
networks and
delivery of
broadband
connectivity to the
cyclone ravaged
region. Satellite
service provider,
ITC Global,
delivered remote
equipment and
technical and
engineering support
to help restore
connectivity at
designated sites in
Vanuatu. BT has also
established a
separate 24/7
Emergency Response
Team Center (ERT)
based in Madley that
will solely support
the relief efforts
of the installations
teams that are
working on the
ground to restore
power and
connectivity to the
South Pacific
Islands of Vanuatu.
“The ERT is a great
example of how BT
volunteers can use
their unique skills
and our own
technology to make a
real difference to
communities around
the world,” said
Lisa Shattock,
Improving Lives
Programme Director,
BT.
“Anytime there is
destruction of this
magnitude, it is
critical that
humanitarian and
relief organizations
are able to access
the connectivity
they need so that
they can quickly
respond and help the
communities impacted
by the event,” said
Terry Bleakley,
Regional Vice
President, Asia,
Intelsat. “Working
closely with BT, our
satellite solutions
will help support
the restoration and
relief efforts
happening on behalf
of the citizens and
communities in
Vanuatu. Our
thoughts are with
those impacted by
Cyclone Pam, and we
are proud to be able
to respond quickly
with these
communications
services.”
“Because the
technology is
unaffected by
terrestrial events,
satellite solutions
play an important
role in supporting
the critical work of
first responders in
times of natural
disaster,” said
Chris Hill, Chief
Technology Officer,
ITC Global. “We
serve customers with
operations in remote
environments, which
puts us in a unique
position to use our
capabilities to help
with the restoration
of the islands’
communications
infrastructure and
enable a faster,
better-coordinated
response for the
agencies deploying
to Vanuatu.”
