It was first reported by Taiwanese telecoms operator Chunghwa Telecom before Taiwan’s Coast Guard was called in to investigate.
They discovered that four cores of the international cable had been mangled. Officials believe the cable was cut near the busy port of Keelung on Taiwan’s north coast.
A Cameroon-registered cargo ship known as the Shunxin 39 has been blamed for causing the damage, according to Taiwan’s National Coast Guard Administration.
Tracking data from the ship’s automatic identification system signal and satellite data showed the Shunxing 39 dragged its anchor near to where the cable was ruptured, Financial Times reports.
Officers reportedly hunted down the cargo ship and ordered it to return to the Port of Keelung. The Coast Guard inspected the outside of the ship and had a brief conversation with the captain. But officials couldn’t step on board it due to bad weather, according to reports.
