Telstra has reported a significant outage due to a fibre break along the Stuart Highway, affecting communities in the NT, WA, and South Australia, that will see crews travelling more than 1,000 kms to fix, the company said.

Telstra said it is mobilising crews from Adelaide to reach the site of the fibre break and begin restoration as quickly and safely as possible. A timeline for resolving the issue was not provided.

In the NT, the outage has affected several areas, including tourist spots like Uluru, Lake Argyle, and the Yulara airport. It is also affecting Lajamanu, Yulara, Mutitjulu and other central Australian communities.

The company stated that the outage is a top priority and is actively running remote diagnostics while working to minimise the impact until repair crews arrive at the affected site.

“We know how disruptive it is for customers to lose connectivity,” a Telstra spokeswoman said in a statement.

“Repairing fibre in these conditions is complex and highly specialised work. Fibre is made from fine strands of glass, so repairs need to be extremely precise – even small misalignments can cause further damage or impact the signal along the cable.

“We understand this area has experienced multiple fibre impacts in recent months, and we know that’s frustrating for local communities. We’re continuing to investigate the underlying causes and how we can reduce the risk of repeat disruptions. “

The company said it will be providing updates as more information becomes available.