BC Ferries is asking travellers to carry cash amid an ongoing Rogers network service outage Friday.
The company said debit and credit card payments as well as ATM machines are only intermittently working at terminals and on vessels due to the outage.
“We kindly ask all customers to please carry cash if sailing today,” the company said. “We apologize for any inconvenience you may experience as a result of this service disruption.”
#TravelAdvisory
Due to the Rogers outage this morning, debit & credit card services are impacted at a number of #BCFerries terminals & on board vessels. We will continue to provide updates here. Thank you for your patience as we look to restore these services. ^km pic.twitter.com/CIKUtm8OC3— BC Ferries | Reconnecting BC (@BCFerries) July 8, 2022
The widespread network outage from Rogers Communications Inc. left many customers without mobile and internet service Friday morning and is also causing problems for police, radio broadcasters and Service Canada passport offices.
A notice on the Toronto-based telecommunications company’s website said the outage is impacting both its wireless and home service customers and is also affecting phone and chat support.
“We are aware of issues currently affecting our networks and our teams are fully engaged to resolve the issue as soon as possible,” Rogers said in a tweet.
On behalf of all of us at Rogers, we sincerely apologize to our customers, and we will continue to keep you updated as we have more information to share, including when we expect service to be back up. pic.twitter.com/JIjGRUzxe5
— RogersHelps (@RogersHelps) July 8, 2022
Asked what caused the outage, how many customers were impacted and where and when service might return, Rogers spokesperson Chloe Luciani referred The Canadian Press back to the tweet.
The company promised to share further updates when they become available and said, “We know how important it is for our customers to stay connected.”
INTERAC said the outage was impacting debit payments and e-transfers “at most financial institutions, impacting the ability to send and receive payments.”
INTERAC e-Transfer services are unavailable at most financial institutions, impacting the ability to send and receive payments. We are waiting for updates from Rogers on their resolution.
— INTERAC (@INTERAC) July 8, 2022
According to its website, there are 44 financial institutions in Canada that use INTERAC debit chip and PIN cards. This includes major banks like BMO, CIBC, HSBC, RBC, Scotiabank, and TD Canada Trust.
There are over 250 financial institutions that use Interac’s e-transfer service.
The Maritime Forces Headquarters / Joint Task Force Pacific Headquarters says Victoria’s 1-800 number for the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre and search and rescue reporting number are out of service due to the outage.
IMPORTANT: Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Victoria’s 1-800 number and #SAR (#727) are not available at this time. Until further notice, to contact Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Victoria please call (250) 413-8933
— MARPAC-JTFP / FMARP-FOIP (@MARPAC_FMARP) July 8, 2022
On social media people reported issues with accessing Rogers services at courthouses, coffee shops and airports.
Police in Toronto and Ottawa warned there were even some connection problems when calling 911.
“If your call fails, please try again, or call from a landline or cellphone with another provider,” Ottawa Police said on Twitter.
If your Rogers cellphone is out today and you need to access a phone in Victoria, the Victoria Disability Resource Centre has this list and map of free-to-use and payphones around town (only 3 payphones left downtown!) #yyjhttps://t.co/3V4ekb7w0g
— Keith Vass (@keithvass) July 8, 2022
Service Canada tweeted it too was wrapped up in the outage with call centres and offices, including ones that issue passports, affected.
The outage stands to exacerbate passport delays that have left Canadians lined up outside Service Canada offices for lengthly periods of time as the government works through a backlog.
TekSavvy, an independent service provider, said in a tweet that it was being impacted by the outage and having trouble with contact centre phone lines. It noted it has no estimate for when there could be a resolution.
Downdetector, a website that tracks outages, showed people started reporting problems with Rogers’ service around 4:30 a.m. local time and by 7 a.m. 20,000 reports had been logged.
Customers in Toronto, Kitchener, Moncton, Ottawa and Mississauga logged the most reports on the website with 45 per cent saying they were experiencing a total blackout, 29 per cent seeing issues with mobile internet and 26 per cent facing landline internet problems.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 8, 2022.
The Canadian Press
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