TELEKOM Malaysia (TM) Bhd is weighing up the possibility of moving some of its installations in Kunak to safeguard them from being damaged by rodents, including rats and squirrels.
The pests partially gnawed through the company’s lines in one part of Kg Simpang Empat recently, leaving two Unifi subscribers without the use of their Wi-Fi service for a fortnight.
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Three TM customers from the same village experienced a similar disruption for almost a month in January, which was also triggered by vermin attacks.
The duo, who spoke out about the latest telecommunications breakdown, provided Hotline with the details of their respective accounts. This information was forwarded to the company.
A TM spokeswoman said its Kunak branch-office was informed about their grievances.
“A team from the Network Section went to Kg Simpang Empat shortly afterwards,” she said. “Our technicians found bite marks on the cables at two different locations caused the Unifi breakdown.
“Rats managed to get into the black cabinet in one part of the village and chewed through many of the fibre-optic lines inside.”
She said a transmission cable between Kg Kadazan and Kg Simpang Empat, on the other hand, was found to have been targeted by squirrels.
“The affected section of this service line ran through some land which was overgrown with long grass and weeds.”
The spokeswoman said the TM team proceeded to replace the damaged infrastructure on the spot, according to her.
“Our personnel later checked on the cabinet and distribution-points servicing both customers. They tightened any loose connections inside and double-checked that the Unifi for these individuals was functioning as it should.”
She said the inconvenience created by the pests had been raised during a meeting at the TM headquarters in Kota Kinabalu earlier this month.
“We intend to have our installations shifted away, in the long term, once the time and budget allow. However, our upper management at the national-level will have to say if this is the way to go.”
When asked if some sort of rodent-repellent pellets might be scattered near its installations in Kunak to ward off these animals, she said this was not a feasible strategy.
The spokeswoman said there was no fixed maintenance schedule for TM installations around the State.
“Our assets are attended to as and when it becomes necessary to do so.”
To this end, he said the company’s staff had been asked to be more mindful of any irregularities involving these structures and to take the appropriate action.
Aside from having to reckon with vermin, TM has also had to grapple with its installations in Kunak being vandalised.
In January, the Unifi service in Kg Jaya Baru was disrupted after mischief-makers hacked the company’s cables. Two of firm’s subscribers, on Lorong 10, were unable to access the Internet for between one to two weeks in this instance.
The same act of vandalism occurred in Kg Simpang Empat two months earlier, leaving TM customers, living along Lorong Muhibbah, without their Wi-Fi service for some time.
