The Soldotna DMV and other state offices in Kenai and Soldotna are operating in a limited capacity after their internet connections failed.
While the Soldotna DMV is open and available to administer knowledge tests, it is unable to process certain permits, driving records, registrations and titles and disability placards, according to a sign posted on its door. No one at the office would elaborate on the reasons behind the closure and the manager refused to discuss the situation.
The local Offices of the Public Defender and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game were also without internet.
Pat Sheilds, a Department of Fish and Game biologist, said the problem began yesterday.
“Wednesday it was kind of intermittent — it was more down than it was up, but it was up once in a while,” Sheilds said. “Today it’s just been down the whole time.” Shields said connections to his department’s local servers were still working.
Brian Heslor, a Fish and Game network technician, said the problem likely came from power outages caused by Wednesday’s wind storm, and then “the network equipment not coming back up right.”
According to Heslor the problem seems to be with the network which connects several Kenai Peninsula state offices to one another and to the Internet. While state agencies all have their own Information Technology departments and local networks, they are served by the Department of Administration’s Enterprise Technology Services division, which Heslor said was working on the problem.
“We haven’t got any updates since yesterday, so we don’t where they’re at,” Heslor said. “But they said they were on it.”
— Staff report
