Phone Networks Having Trouble in Katrina’s Path

As you can probably imagine, so many of the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina were/are without infrastructure such as natural gas, fresh water, electricity, and telephone service. The statistics of how many are out of telephone service are just starting to come out. Both Cingular Wireless and Nextel are having major service interruptions due to both the widespread power outages, as well as the flooding (which is slowing repair crews from reaching cell phone transmitters, etc). Some cellular phone companies are implementing trucks with portable cell site towers attached to the top of them, so that customers can have service while crews make the attempt to reach their service towers.

In my view, I think that phone providers (both cellular and landline) are gaining more and more experience in both dealing with such disasters, but also finding ways to try and prevent outages to the best of their ability during natural disasters such as a hurricane of such strength.

In my view, I think that phone providers (both cellular and landline) are gaining more and more experience in both dealing with such disasters, and also finding ways to try and prevent outages to the best of their ability during natural disasters such as a hurricane of unbelievable strength.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Telephone companies struggled to restore service and measure the damage to their networks in Louisiana and Mississippi on Tuesday after Hurricane Katrina cut power and triggered severe flooding.

All three companies said power losses were the main threat to further service failures, but that flooding was hampering their efforts to reach network equipment.

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