Cingular is Prepared for Upcoming Severe Weather
22 Septembre 2005 - 7:44PM
PR Newswire (US)
Provides Wireless Tips for Consumers in Preparation for Severe
Flooding, Lightning, Wind or Tornado Damage Related to Hurricanes
COLUMBUS, Ohio, Sept. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- With Hurricane Rita
bearing down on the Gulf Coast and related severe weather predicted
far off shore, people in the Ohio Valley also need to be prepared
for severe storms. "We know all too well how critical communication
is in an emergency situation," said Dori Marks, VP/GM for
Cingular's Tri-States Region, which includes all of Ohio, and
Western Pennsylvania. "Last year severe storms were in the area and
our network proved its reliability. For many people, their wireless
phone was their only line of communication during and after some of
the summer storms." The Cingular network is designed and built to
withstand hurricane-force winds. Additionally, the company has a
rigorous emergency preparedness and response process in place: -
Cingular conducts ongoing readiness drills throughout the year to
ensure network facilities and personnel are ready-to-go at a
moment's notice. - Cingular's Regional Network Operations Center
(RNOC) monitors and maintains the network 24 hours a day, seven
days a week. The monitoring system allows Cingular to assess and
handle any emergency situation within minutes. - Because electrical
outages are prevalent during storms, select Cingular cell sites are
backed up by high-capacity batteries and emergency generators,
ensuring a secure source for power if needed. - Cingular has
Cellular on Wheels, also known as "COWs," which are self contained
mobile cell sites that can be towed or driven into an area to
provide extra call capacity or to restore communications following
a disaster. - "COLTs," or Cellular on Light Trucks, are smaller
than COWs and can be driven wherever a mobile cell site is needed
and include two masts for microwave antennas. - A "RAT," or Remote
Antenna Trailer, provides back-up antenna service if a tower is out
of service. "Equally important, our employees are prepared to help
customers before, during and after these occurrences," added Marks.
To help consumers understand what to expect when they use their
cell phones or other wireless devices during an emergency and what
they can do to prepare, Cingular offers these tips: Before severe
weather hits: - Program all emergency contact numbers into your
wireless phone. Store numbers for the police department, fire
station, hospital, as well as your family members so you don't have
to think about it during and after an emergency. - Have a family
communications plan in place. Designate someone out of the area as
a central contact, and make certain all family members know who to
contact if they become separated. - Keep your wireless phone
batteries charged at all times. Use your car charger to charge your
wireless phone when power is out, or pick up a disposable battery
that will give you an hour of talk time without any charging. -
Keep your wireless phone dry and protected. The biggest threat from
hurricanes is water versus wind damage so keep your equipment safe
from the elements by storing it in a plastic sandwich or freezer
bag. - Forward your home number to your wireless number in the
event of an evacuation. Since call forwarding is based out of the
telephone central office, you will get incoming calls from your
landline phone, even if your local telephone service is disrupted
at your home. In the unlikely event the central office is isolated,
call forwarding may not work. Staying in touch and maximizing your
wireless service during and after an emergency: - Try text
messaging, or SMS (Short Messaging Service). Most wireless phones
today are text messaging capable, and often times during an
emergency situation such as a hurricane, text messages will go
through quicker than voice calls. More importantly, using text
messaging helps free up the voice lines for emergency officials. -
Use a landline phone if it is available. In many instances,
landline service may still be available in your area so this still
may be an option. - Keep non-emergency calls to a minimum. Remember
to limit your calls to the most important ones. Chances are that if
there is severe weather, many people will be attempting to place
wireless calls to loved ones, friends and business associates. If
the landline phones are not working, this probability increases. -
Wait 10 seconds before redialing a call. On many wireless phones,
to redial a number, you simply push "send" after you've ended a
call to redial the previous number. If you do this too quickly, the
data from the phone to the cell sites does not have enough time to
clear before you've resent the same data and may contribute to
network congestion. - Use your wireless phone to access weather
information. Many homes lose power during severe weather. If you
have a wireless phone that provides access to the Internet, you can
watch the Weather Channel through Cingular's Mobi-TV service or
through My-Cast Weather. - If you have a camera phone, take, store
and send photos of damaged property to your insurance company from
your device. About Cingular Wireless Cingular Wireless is the
largest wireless carrier in the United States, serving 50.4 million
customers. Cingular, a joint venture between SBC Communications
Inc. (NYSE:SBC) and BellSouth Corporation (NYSE:BLS), has the
largest digital voice and data network in the nation -- the
ALLOVER(SM) network -- and the largest mobile-to-mobile community
of any national wireless carrier. Cingular is the only U.S.
wireless carrier to offer Rollover(SM), the wireless plan that lets
customers keep their unused monthly minutes. Details of the company
are available at http://www.cingular.com/. Get Cingular Wireless
press releases e-mailed to you automatically. Sign up at
http://www.cingular.com/newsroom. DATASOURCE: Cingular Wireless
CONTACT: Jim Orso of Cingular Wireless, +1-314-543-6435, or Web
site: http://www.cingular.com/ http://www.cingular.com/newsroom
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