BETHEL, Alaska (AP) - Thick ice has formed on a GCI communications tower near Scammon Bay, knocking out internet services for multiple southwest Alaska communities.
The unusually thick ice has caused frequent service interruptions since the beginning of April, KYUK-AM reported Wednesday.
GCI said a technician has been taking a snow machine out to check the site every day, but nobody can climb the tower yet to fix the problem. Company spokeswoman Heather Handyside said that the only solution is to wait for ice to melt.
“There’s so much ice on the tower that it really makes it unsafe for our crews to work on it,” Handyside said.
She said the towers are operated through the state and are built for Arctic conditions, but called this year’s situation extreme.
“So what we’re doing right now is monitoring it, waiting for the snow and ice to get to such a situation that we can approach the tower and begin to assess it, and make repairs if needed,” she said.
GCI has notified affected customers and will issue credits based on the duration of interruptions after repairs are made.
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Information from: KYUK-AM, http://www.kyuk.org
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