Major power breakdown in Pakistan causes partial internet blackout

ISLAMABAD – A massive power outage that hit Pakistan on early Saturday night caused internet ‘collapse’ as connectivity dropped to 52% of ordinary levels.

NetBlocks, an organization that maps internet freedom, said that at first 62% of Pakistan’s observable internet connectivity was working. Residential and commercial networks were most impacted in the blackout, it added.

Update: Real-time telemetry show few signs of recovery as #Pakistan's power grid failure continues into its 6th hour; national internet connectivity is now down to 52% of ordinary levels with growing impact observed on #Islamabad ???????? #BlackoutPakistan

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— NetBlocks.org (@netblocks) January 10, 2021

The connectivity has plunged to 52 per cent of the ordinary levels after six hours of the power blackout.

The Internet observatory has indicated that impact is highest at the edge of the network while critical infrastructure and telecommunication exchanges are less impacted, likely due to effective failover to backup power.

A number of users reported on Sunday morning that their mobile phone signals had been impacted, it added.

Meanwhile, the power supply in parts of Pakistan has been partially restored after the country was plunged into darkness after a massive blackout early Sunday.