TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Chunghwa Telecom reported Monday that an undersea cable connecting Taiwan and the outlying Matsu Islands has been disconnected due to an abnormality. 

The company said the Taiwan-Matsu No. 2 cable experienced “an abnormal fault in the core wires” at 12:49 p.m. on Sunday, per CNA. However, communication services automatically switched to microwave transmission, ensuring that voice calls, internet access, and other services remained unaffected for Matsu users.

The Ministry of Digital Affairs (MODA) said Chunghwa Telecom notified it on Sunday of planned repairs on the Taiwan-Matsu No. 2 cable, but the core wires snapped again, escalating the issue into a total disconnection.

Following protocol, Chunghwa Telecom mobilized personnel to conduct measurements and notified the Coast Guard to investigate whether any suspicious vessels were near the fault site. The company is coordinating with international submarine cable repair teams to fix both the Taiwan-Matsu No. 2 and No. 3 cables.

If weather conditions permit, repairs on the Taiwan-Matsu No. 3 cable could be completed by the end of February, while work on the No. 2 cable is expected to finish by the end of March.

To maintain connectivity, Chunghwa Telecom has expanded microwave bandwidth to 12.6 Gbps, exceeding Matsu’s peak traffic demand of 9.5 Gbps.

Meanwhile, construction of the Taiwan-Matsu No. 4 cable is underway, with completion expected by mid-2026, further strengthening internet resilience between Taiwan and Matsu.

Chunghwa Telecom previously announced that the Taiwan-Matsu No. 3 cable was completely severed on Jan. 15, while the No. 2 cable was disconnected on Jan. 21. MODA attributed both failures to natural degradation.