Sprint Customers Able to Stay Connected During Storm
Sprint (NYSE:S) announced today that its networks performed well during
Hurricane Gustav and continue to be operational as Sprint technicians
work to restore service in the impacted areas by moving in portable
generators and Cell Sites on Wheels (COWS) to ensure customers have
wireless service.
In addition, many Sprint customers report that their wireless voice and
data service remained operational both during and following the storm.
Sprint has a partnership with hurricane tracker, Mark Sudduth. Sudduth
uses Sprint Mobile Broadband Cards to relay data and live video to his
website during hurricanes. “The network
performed flawlessly, and I was able to complete my mission of providing
important weather data to consumers and news organizations,”
said Sudduth.
Sprint’s Emergency Response Team (ERT)
received dozens of requests from first responders, local government and
businesses in the impacted area. Sprint ERT personnel are supporting
agencies with additional Nextel Direct Connect®
Handsets with Direct Connect and Direct Talksm
capability. Direct Talksm enabled handsets can
communicate off-network via push-to-talk with other Direct Talksm-capable
handsets over short ranges, completely independent of any wireless
network.
“The Sprint ERT has a dedicated staff of 16
full-time employees that are always prepared to assist with disaster
relief and recovery efforts, whether it was Hurricane Katrina, the
Virginia Tech incident or more recently the San Diego wildfires,”
says Tanya Lin, operations manager for Sprint ERT. “What
we offer is unique and after staging in Pensacola, Texas and Baton Rouge
for nine days and providing more than 1,000 phones to more than 50
customers, we are now moving towards Florida and the Carolinas to help
with the forthcoming storms in that region.”
Another critical resource Sprint provides public sector and first
responder teams is the Sprint ERT’s Go-Kit™.
These kits provide business and first responders immediate access to
mobile communications tools for emergencies, including fully-charged
cell phones and wireless Broadband cards. These devices have a dedicated
hotline for instant activation as needed.
Sprint business customer Winn-Dixie secured Go-Kits from Sprint. “The
Sprint Go-Kits provided us with instant communication,”
said Joey Medina, regional vice president of Winn-Dixie Stores Inc.
