DUE to the powerful Mandalay earthquake on 28 March 2025, telecommunications services were disrupted in various regions, including the Nay Pyi Taw Union Territory, Mandalay Region, and Sagaing Region. Out of more than 26,000 mobile communication towers providing services across the states and regions, over 6,730 towers experienced service outages.

Thanks to the concerted efforts of the operators to restore communication services, by 11 April, more than 6,400 towers had been brought back online while over 98 per cent of mobile towers in the Nay Pyi Taw area, over 94 per cent in the Mandalay Region, and over 96 per cent in the Sagaing Region have now resumed communication services.

Some of the mobile communication towers in Mandalay are installed as rooftop towers on high-rise buildings. Due to structural damage or collapse of these buildings, service disruptions occurred. Therefore, it requires a certain amount of time to carry out necessary repairs and reinstallation work.

Therefore, to ensure smooth communication for the public living near the affected mobile towers, temporary solutions have been implemented depending on the situation in each area. These include setting up temporary mobile communication camps by installing equipment on trees and deploying Cell on Wheels (CoW) — mobile communication towers — to help restore connectivity for the public.

Due to disruptions in home-delivered internet services, many locations using FTTx fibre internet — including households, schools, and offices — experienced connectivity issues. However, thanks to the efforts of Internet Service Providers (ISPs), who mobilized both manpower and equipment, FTTx internet services have now been restored in most areas within Nay Pyi Taw and Mandalay.

Myanmar Posts and Telecommunications (MPT) has been actively carrying out clearance and repair works in Zabuthiri and Pyinmana townships in Nay Pyi Taw, addressing damage caused by the earthquake to telephone poles and fibre optic cables. In Mandalay, repairs are also underway on mobile towers that experienced service disruptions. Moreover, in Aungmyaythazan Township, a mobile tower has been installed and activated at the emergency relief camp near 26th Street and the west side of Thingaza Road, at Basic Education High School 21, to support emergency communication needs.

Ministry of Transport & Communications/KTZH

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