Bermuda’s public servants have been jointly chosen as the winners of the September Public Service Excellence Award for their hard work and contributions in the wake of a cyberattack that crippled government systems.

David Burt said: “Without question, the last few weeks have been exhausting and challenging for the Government.

“But our public servants have gone above and beyond to ensure that critical services were met, in spite of the adversity faced.”

The Premier added: “I am extremely grateful for everyone’s resilience and adaptability as we worked to provide solutions to navigate through the significant network and systems interruptions we experienced.”

The PSEA initiative was launched to help recognise public officers who demonstrate admirable service delivery in the previous 60 days.

A government spokeswoman said that while the award is usually reserved for individuals or teams of less than 15 people, it was decided that it was “only fitting” to recognise the many public servants who went above and beyond.

“While most departments were hampered without access to phone, e-mail or IT services in the early stages, government offices remained open for walk-in service, and solutions were implemented to ensure critical service delivery,” the spokeswoman said.

“Each ministry pivoted swiftly, implementing innovative emergency response plans.

“The Ministry of Finance and the Department of Employee and Organisational Development pivoted swiftly to ensure weekly and monthly payrolls were processed.

“The Transport Control Department maintained almost full-service delivery employing tremendous innovation.

“The Department of Health Insurance and the Department of Social Insurance also worked to ensure that it was able to accept payments and new enrolments via paper form applications delivered in person.

“And the Department of Immigration accepted and processed all submissions, including those made before September 20.”

Mr Burt said thanked civil servants for their hard work, adding: “There are so many working behind the scenes who engaged in various operational and administrative activities to keep services functioning.

“While there were gaps, many public officers rallied to ensure limited impact to the public despite not having access to the tools required to provide full service.

“Government continues to make steady progress in restoring our systems and services, and I want to express my deep appreciation to each and every member of every ministry and department for their collaborative innovation and endurance.”

Cherie Whitter, the acting head of the Public Service, said: “Every ministry has performed remarkably to uphold the principles of public service throughout these trying times.

“Team Public Service, thank you all, on behalf of the entire Public Service Executive. You are all champions as this unprecedented event has proven.”