During March 21 to 22, NCC Chairperson Chan, Ting-I, accompanied with NCC Commissioners Yaw-Shyang Chen, Yeali S. Sun, Wen-Chung Guo and Teng,Wei-Chung; Chief Secretary Hsiao Chi-Hong and representatives from five major telecommunications operators visited the disaster prevention and mitigation mobile communications platforms in Hengchun and Manzhou Townships, Pingtung County to deepen understanding of quality of mobile communications in the region. The group also visited Chunghwa Telecom’s Fangshan Submarine Cable and Satellite Telecommunications Center to observe the company’s installation of international submarine cable and satellite telecommunications facilities and operating procedures.
　　On March 21st, the group was received by Director Teng-Chih Li of Kenting National Park Headquarters and exchanged views on telecommunications current needs and services of the Hengchun Peninsula. NCC also took the opportunity to express its appreciation to Kenting National Park Headquarters for providing telecommunications operators a venue for installing the disaster prevention and mitigation mobile communications platforms.
　　In recent years, due to climate change, an increasing number of typhoons or extreme weather conditions have affected the area. Since disruption to power interruption is the major reason for the communications failure of base stations in such circumstances, NCC, leading up to 2017, subsidized local governments and five mobile communications operators to establish twelve disaster prevention and mitigation mobile communications platforms in Mudan Township, Shizi Township, Manzhou Township and Hengchun Township across the Hengchun Peninsula. Consequently, positive outcomes have inspired NCC to continue with subsidize telecommunications operators (to a percentage of 49%) to establish a disaster prevention and mitigation mobile communication platform, to be completed by the end of March 2019, in Eluanbi section of the Kenting National Park Headquarters, using the budget from “2019 Forward-Looking Infrastructure Plan – Enhancement on Disaster Prevention and Mitigation of Mobile Telecommunications Infrastructure Installation Plan”. Such platforms not only help to enhance the quality and coverage of mobile telecommunications services for the residents and millions of travelers every year, but also provide Hengchun Peninsula with a more stable disaster prevention communications capacity.
　　NCC has actively been promoting the “Enhancement on Disaster Prevention and Mitigation of Mobile Telecommunications Infrastructure Installation Plan” of “2019 Forward-Looking Infrastructure Plan” with view enhancing and expanding back-up power of mobile communications base stations in remote areas, and also fortifying the protection of the platforms, enabling them to resist scale factor 15 gale winds. In first phase of this plan, approximately 56 fixed and 26 mobile disaster prevention and mitigation mobile telecommunications platforms have already been established and succeeded in largely improving the telecommunications quality and enhancing communications stability in remote areas. As part of the plan, leading up to the end of 2019, NCC plans to establish a further 33 fixed and 18 mobile disaster prevention and mitigation mobile communications platform.
　　Upon completion of this plan, the disaster prevention capacity of the country’s mobile telecommunications platforms will have been significantly strengthened, communications services in disaster-prone areas and remote countries enhanced; and telecommunications network stability and reliability improved. This not only ensures people in remote countries can be provided with communications, but also enhances efficiency of disaster prevention and protects lives and properties.