🛑 Internet down in Sundre? Local businesses are scrambling! 💻💸 See how they’re coping with the Xplore outage & what this means for the community. 👓 #Olds #Alberta #InternetOutage
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Sundre Businesses and Residents Left Scrambling with Xplore Internet Outage
When the internet goes down in a digital world, it’s more than just an inconvenience—it can bring entire communities to a halt. That was the reality for residents and businesses in Sundre when Xplore, a provider of high-speed fibre optic internet, experienced a multi-day service outage. What seemed like a minor hiccup at first turned into a major disruption that left local businesses, such as the Sundre Eyecare Clinic, scrambling for backup solutions.
This incident raises important questions about our dependence on internet connectivity, the challenges businesses face in handling unexpected interruptions, and how resilience can be built in the face of these disruptions.
The Unexpected Impact on Local Businesses
For the Sundre Eyecare Clinic, the Xplore outage brought immediate challenges. Dominik Hanson, one of the clinic’s dispensers, shared how the business found itself in a tight spot when the internet cut out. Their usual operations—processing payments, placing orders for glasses and contacts, and even submitting insurance claims—came to a standstill.
Relying on cash-only transactions, the clinic had to scramble for a temporary solution. In the short term, they managed by calling their Olds location to process debit and credit payments over the phone. But this ad-hoc workaround wasn’t just inconvenient—it also revealed how vulnerable even basic daily operations can become when the internet goes down.
What this highlights is the fragility of the systems modern businesses rely on. For many, their internet connection is the linchpin holding together not just communication, but critical financial processes. Without it, even something as simple as paying for glasses becomes a logistical nightmare.
Community Response: Patience and Adaptability
One surprising outcome was how understanding the customers proved to be. Many residents of Sundre also use Xplore, so they knew firsthand what was happening. While we might assume that frustrations would run high, Hanson noted that most patients were willing to accommodate the new cash-only or phone-payment procedures.
This speaks to a broader theme of community resilience. In small towns, where personal relationships often drive customer loyalty, people tend to be more forgiving when things go wrong. This adaptability and patience on the part of Sundre’s residents shows a level of collective strength and a “we’re in this together” attitude that we could all learn from.
However, it also begs the question: How much longer would this goodwill last if the outage persisted? Would patience run thin as businesses continued to grapple with inefficiencies?
The Risks of Connectivity Reliance
While internet service interruptions are nothing new, the increasing dependency on constant connectivity raises concerns about preparedness. From hospitals and clinics to retail shops, businesses are deeply reliant on an uninterrupted connection to run smoothly. And it's not just about credit card payments—everything from inventory management to communication between branches happens online.
For businesses like the Sundre Eyecare Clinic, this outage led to delays in processing insurance claims and placing orders for products, causing frustration for both staff and customers. Larger purchases, like glasses costing several hundred dollars, became cumbersome to handle without the convenience of electronic payments. It’s easy to imagine similar impacts rippling through other businesses across Sundre.
The key lesson here is that as our digital infrastructure evolves, so too must our contingency planning. It’s a reminder that having backup systems—whether it's cash payment alternatives, mobile hotspots, or even manual procedures—is no longer optional. It’s essential.
Looking Ahead: Building Resilience
What can Sundre’s businesses and residents learn from this outage? First, it’s clear that backup plans are critical. The Sundre Eyecare Clinic, like many businesses, had to improvise. But businesses shouldn’t have to rely on last-minute fixes. Creating solid contingency strategies should be part of every organization’s operating plan. Solutions like keeping a mobile hotspot on hand or ensuring there’s a way to manually process payments can go a long way in minimizing disruptions.
For internet providers like Xplore, this event underscores the importance of transparency and communication during outages. Automated messages stating that a problem is “under investigation” don’t provide the reassurance or timeline that customers need. Clear, frequent updates can help businesses make informed decisions about their operations during service interruptions.
As Sundre waits for its internet service to be fully restored, the community will undoubtedly continue to band together. But this outage serves as a timely reminder of the need to strike a balance between embracing digital technologies and maintaining the ability to operate without them when the unexpected occurs.
We Want to Hear from You
Has your business ever faced a similar situation? How did you handle it? Or perhaps you’ve been affected by the Xplore outage in Sundre. Head over to our Facebook or Twitter pages to join the conversation and share your thoughts on how communities and businesses can better prepare for unexpected disruptions like this.