A person has died in Sydney after they were unable to contact triple-0 on TPG Telecom’s mobile network.
The company said the person was using a Lebara service on a Samsung device when they tried to make the emergency call on November 13.
In a statement released on Tuesday, TPG Telecom said it was “deeply saddened” by the incident and extended its “sincere condolences to the family and loved ones of that person at this difficult time”.
The company was notified of the incident on November 17 at 5.22pm by NSW Ambulance.
According to the company, TPG Telecom’s mobile network was fully operational with no reported outages at the time of the attempted emergency call.
Early investigations indicate the failed calls were caused by the customer’s Samsung device running software incompatible with triple-0 calls on TPG Telecom’s network.
Samsung had previously identified that certain older devices required a software update to enable emergency call functionality.
TPG Telecom said it had communicated with affected customers to urgently update their devices.
Under new regulations, handsets not updated are blocked from making triple-0 calls after 28–35 days from the first notification. The company’s most recent update notification was sent on November 7.
TPG Telecom Managing Director and chief executive Inaki Berroeta said customer safety was their “highest priority”.
“This is a tragic incident, and our condolences and thoughts are with the individual’s family and loved ones,” Mr Berroeta said.
“Access to emergency services is critical. We urge all customers with outdated software to replace or update their devices without delay to ensure they can reach triple-0 in an emergency.”
The company has also notified Communications Minister Anika Wells, the NSW government, the Australian Communications and Media Authority, the Triple Zero Custodian, and other relevant government and regulatory bodies.
The death comes after a major network outage at Optus in September, which occurred during a scheduled firewall upgrade on September 18.
The upgrade triggered widespread technical failures that blocked about 600 triple-0 calls across South Australia, Western Australia, the Northern Territory, and NSW. Normal calls were largely unaffected.
The outage has been linked to the deaths of three Australians – a 68-year-old woman from Queenstown, a 74-year-old man from Willetton, and a 49-year-old man also from Western Australia.
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