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Disaster council flags communications vulnerability after South Bay fiber cuts; city works with AT&T to harden links
Summary
City officials told the San Francisco Disaster Council that April 9 fiber-optic cable cuts in the South Bay exposed dependencies on commercial networks; officials said San Francisco rerouted traffic, was not critically affected, and is working with AT&T and public-safety chiefs to shore up critical links and refine plans.
San Francisco officials told the Disaster Council that an April 9 cut to fiber‑optic cabling in the South Bay exposed how dependent the region has become on commercial communications networks. "We have become so dependent upon technology ... when we suddenly don't have access to that technology, it brings home how important that technology is," said Chris, describing the incident and its effects on neighboring jurisdictions.
Council members were informed that San Francisco’s systems were rerouted so the city maintained Internet access after a period of disruption and slowness. City staff said they have been working with AT&T and public‑safety leaders to identify areas that may need extra protection and to develop processes to restore critical communications if a similar outage occurs locally.
The Disaster Council also highlighted the Department of Emergency Management's (DEM) updated public materials and online resources. The chair asked members to review a new DEM brochure available in five print languages (three languages on the website) and pointed to links on the site, including 72hours.org, as resources for individual preparedness.
Officials framed the April 9 event as a useful rehearsal for a larger catastrophe and said they will incorporate lessons learned into disaster planning and technical recovery procedures.
