Nationwide telco outage again illustrates vulnerability of critical utilities
08 July 2026
The telecommunications outage that impacted much of the country this morning once again highlights the vulnerability of Australia’s critical utilities infrastructure and underscores the significant disruption to consumers and communities nationwide.
The early morning outage wreaked havoc with public transport networks across the country and also caused emergency service connection issues for some mobile users, according to media reports.
“While there is no indication at this stage that this morning’s widespread outage was caused by excavation damage to critical utility infrastructure underground, it nevertheless serves as a reminder of the mass disruption that outages cause,” BYDA CEO Mell Greenall said.
“Compared to electricity, gas or water, telcos account for almost 50 per cent of utility damage based on current data, with a wide range of possible causes including civil construction, other building and construction, fencing and landscaping works.
“Utility service strikes are entirely preventable but until we see the reforms required implemented nationally to safeguard all utility assets which are national critical infrastructure, the risks and potentially severe consequences of further utility outages will remain.”
More than 15,000 reported underground utility strikes occur each year in Australia, costing the national economy $4.6 billion. On average, that’s at least 41 preventable utility strikes every day, one every 20 minutes in daylight hours.
Excavation damage to telco fibre optic cables near Frankston, Victoria in 2022 impacted the entire state of Tasmania, shutting down flights, ATMs, banks and business EFTPOS systems.
“The footpaths and roads that workers, shoppers and motorists walk and drive on hide a chaotic mess of cables, pipes and services that businesses and consumers rely on every day for their internet, power and water supply,” Ms Greenall said.
“The next outage or fatality will not be a surprise. It will be a choice – and it will prove costly.”
For further information, case studies or interview requests with BYDA CEO Mell Greenall, contact:
Simon Mossman
Head of Insight, Research and Advocacy – Before You Dig Australia
0417 064 104
[email protected]