Optus finds 2697 Triple Zero calls failed in mobile outage

Optus has revealed at least 2697 calls to Triple Zero during its November 2023 outage failed to connect, over 11 times more than previously reported.

The telco also said that no welfare check was undertaken for the customers who couldn't get through, in breach of emergency protocols.

The admission was made in a statement by Optus’ interim chief executive Michael Venter late on Tuesday.

“I offer my deepest apologies to all those customers who were unable to access Triple Zero services during the outage and did not receive a follow-up check from us,” Venter said.

“We are writing to each customer individually to apologise for this and provide the opportunity to discuss their specific circumstances and whether there is anything we can do to assist them further”.

Up until now, Optus had said only 228 calls failed to connect during the mobile network outage, but that manual welfare checks had been conducted on all callers.

That account had been under increased pressure as some callers unable to get through said they had received no follow-up from Optus.

The telco has now admitted that “an additional 2468 customers that made Triple Zero calls from our network that did not reach the Emergency Service Centre", run by Telstra.

Communications minister Michelle Rowland said that the total number of failed calls was at least 2697.

Optus said it would “update the senate record” with the revised numbers and that it had also provided the new data to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).

It pledged continued cooperation “with ongoing investigations by the government, the senate and the ACMA into the outage.”

The telco also said it would appoint “an independent third party to undertake a review of our processes supporting our welfare check obligations”.

Rowland said that the revision upwards of the number of failed calls "is a deeply concerning development given the critical importance of the Triple Zero service."

The government said it had "conveyed its expectation" that customers that were impacted be contacted "expeditiously."