A recent network upgrade by telecommunications provider Optus resulted in the tragic deaths of three individuals after approximately 600 emergency calls to Triple Zero, Australia’s emergency service number, failed to connect. The incident, which occurred on Thursday, impacted users across South Australia, Western Australia, and the Northern Territory. The fatalities include an eight-week-old baby from Gawler West, roughly 43 kilometres north of Adelaide, and a 68-year-old woman from the Adelaide suburb of Queenstown. The identity of the third victim, from Western Australia, has not yet been disclosed.
Optus disclosed the outage to the public, emergency services, and state and territory leaders during a press conference held on Friday evening, leading to widespread outrage and condemnation. Peter Malinauskas, the Premier of South Australia, expressed his disbelief at the failure, stating, “I have not witnessed such incompetence from an Australian corporation in respect to communications worse than this.”
Understanding the Outage
Telecommunications companies routinely conduct network upgrades, which should ideally include a range of tests both before and after implementation. These tests are designed to identify any potential issues quickly. If a problem arises, companies can either reverse the upgrade or utilize a failover system—a backup that has not been upgraded—to maintain emergency services. Unfortunately, during Optus’s recent upgrade, a technical failure went unrecognized, resulting in a critical failure of Triple Zero calls.
While regular calls continued to connect, the Triple Zero service operates through a cooperative framework involving various telecommunications companies and government agencies. The core components of Triple Zero are implemented separately, meaning issues affecting them do not necessarily disrupt normal calls. According to the Telecommunications (Emergency Call Service) Determination 2019, companies must ensure they have protocols to manage emergency calls effectively, including providing access to Triple Zero at no cost.
On Friday afternoon, Stephen Rue, CEO of Optus, extended his apologies to the families affected by the outage and assured the public that a thorough investigation would be conducted. He stated, “You have my assurance that we are conducting a thorough investigation and once concluded we will share the facts of the incident publicly.”
Recurrent Issues and Regulatory Responses
This incident is not the first time Optus has faced scrutiny for network failures affecting emergency services. On March 1, 2024, a disruption within the network of rival provider Telstra resulted in 127 failed calls to Triple Zero, although this incident did not lead to any fatalities. Subsequently, Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) levied a fine of A$3 million against Telstra.
In November 2023, Optus experienced another significant outage, which prevented more than 2,100 users from accessing Triple Zero. During that incident, Optus failed to conduct 369 welfare checks on individuals who attempted to call for emergency help. Although there were no fatalities then, the company faced a A$12 million penalty from the ACMA for breaching emergency call regulations.
The government commissioned a formal review of Optus that concluded in April 2024, providing 18 recommendations to prevent such incidents in the future. These included appointing a “Triple Zero custodian” to oversee the efficient functioning of the emergency call ecosystem and clarifying expectations for network operators regarding emergency call delivery.
In response to the recent tragedy, Anika Wells, the federal Minister for Communications, noted that the Australian government has accepted all recommendations from the previous review. Twelve of the 18 recommendations have been fully implemented, with the remainder in progress. Despite these efforts, the loss of three lives due to an inability to contact emergency services raises significant concerns about the effectiveness of current measures.
The federal government may need to consider establishing even stricter minimum performance standards for telecommunications companies. Potential regulations could mandate minimum upload and download speeds, as well as timely public notifications about outages. Additionally, there may be a need for telecommunications providers to adopt reasonable engineering practices to prevent network failures during updates.
The ACMA is set to launch an investigation into this latest outage, while the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission may also examine whether Optus’s actions constitute unconscionable conduct, potentially resulting in more severe penalties. Such measures could motivate Optus and other telecommunications companies to enhance their services and prioritize public safety moving forward.
