A map of the April 2016 Ecuador earthquake. Photo: Inmarsat

[Via Satellite 04-20-2016] Emergency telecoms first responder Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF) has deployed to Ecuador to provide emergency support following the recent April 16 earthquake. The 7.8 magnitude earthquake, as registered by the U.S. Geological Survey, is the strongest the country has experienced for almost 40 years.

A team from TSF’s newly formed deployment base in Guadalajara, Mexico, has quickly established a response plan to help more than 100,000 people affected by the disaster. Following an official request for assistance from the United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination body (UNDAC), a team from TSF is now supporting its UN partner in its connectivity efforts for the country’s most impacted zones.

The TSF team will carry out vital assessments of the telecommunications situation in the area affected by the earthquake, which spans several hundred square kilometers, and will work with communities and other responders in the region. With support from sponsor Inmarsat, TSF will use Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) satellite communications service and IsatPhones to provide voice and Internet connectivity where needed in the country.