Telecommunications provider Flow has completed restoration of its services in the communities north of the Rabacca Dry River following the eruption of the La Soufrière Volcano on April 9.
The network infrastructure north of the Rabacca Dry River suffered extensive damage but after weeks of grueling work, Flow is reporting that all services including broadband, landline, television, and mobile are now fully functional.
Restoration work began on August 3, after the all-clear to travel beyond Georgetown was issued. The company replaced more than 1,400 meters of cable and critical network components in just over a month.
Flow Country Manager, Wayne Hull has said all customers from Orange Hill to Fancy will have had their bills zero-rated from April 9, and this facility will be extended through to the end of September.
“We empathize with the heavily impacted communities closest to La Soufriere, especially those who were further affected by the Lahar flows and flooding which followed the eruptions. We would like to see these communities return to the vibrance they have always possessed,” he said.
“In that vein, as a responsible corporate citizen, Flow has absorbed more than EC$2.5 million to ensure our customers can have some measure of relief as they put their lives back together while having the essential services of mobile and fixed connectivity at no cost,” he added.
A customer from Point Village shared: “It was hard to come back up from the shelter with no TV, but the technicians came, and I feel little better to have back the service and the ease up on the bill makes plenty sense.”
Meanwhile, Flow is also continuing service upgrades by migrating customers still on the old copper network to the advanced HFC network.
“With an upgrade of this magnitude, customers would be surprised to hear that comes to them absolutely free. We will upgrade our customers to this more reliable network which offers more internet speed and superior cable TV quality at no extra cost,” said Nikala Williams-Rodgers, Marketing and Communications Manager, Flow.
FLOW encourages its customers to report any issues or queries including downed lines, loss of service, and vandalism to equipment to ensure prompt service. These channels include WhatsApp messages to 784-494-5464 and calling 1-800-804-2994; by dialing 100 from any Flow mobile handset, or visiting www.DiscoverFlow.co.