The Farice Line, the fibre optic line connecting Iceland to Europe via the Faroe Islands and Scotland, was cut again yesterday morning near Inverness, Scotland, when a digger accidentally severed it. This is the 17th time the line has been cut in the less than two years it has been in operation. Two of the previous disruptions have been caused by rats chewing through the line.
Frettabladid reports that Gudmundur Gunnarsson, Manager of Farice, says that the frequent disruptions are unacceptable. According to Gudmundur, a big part of the problem is that the route of the cord from the north of Scotland down to Edinburgh is not marked well enough. “We are now strengthening around two thirds of the land route; if had had that capability from the start we would have only had four disruptions and not 17.” He added that measures have now been taken to deter rats from damaging the line.
Nevertheless, software expert Fridrik Skúlason says: “The situation is just outrageous. This might lead the few software companies which have not already taken the distribution of their software out of the country to do so.”
