September is National Preparedness Month
Additionally, T-Mobile has a fleet of trucks that can be mobilized to areas that have been hard hit by a weather emergency. SatCOLTS are mobile cell sites built directly on a light truck or a heavy-duty vehicle. With an onboard power generator to keep the signal alive, and an extendable mast to increase the coverage area, the SatCOLTS are an important part of T-Mobile‘s plan to keep areas connected even when there is a disaster or a weather emergency.
Also of use during dangerous weather conditions is a SatCOW. No, this is not a kind of satellite on wheels that you can milk. It is a satellite cell site mounted on a towed trailer. With a power source that is wheeled along with it, the SatCOW is smaller, more compact, and is easier to tow to locations. Both are designed to be used to provide temporary talk, text, and data connectivity to both first responders, and the general public. Often in the case of disastrous weather, the carrier will allow non-T-Mobile customers to make phone calls.
T-Mobile also brings Self-organizing networks (SON) to areas where T-Mobile customers are in danger of losing their connection to the network because of a thunderstorm, hurricane, tornado, or other weather conditions. SON uses AI-powered technology to make hundreds of thousands of corrections to the network in real time during a disaster or weather event to help keep people connected.
There is a human part to T-Mobile’s disaster protocol
There is a human element to T-Mobile‘s disaster protocol. Team members help those impacted with a loss of connectivity by providing them with Wi-Fi to help them make a call, and a generator-powered charger to replenish their phone’s battery in the event of a power outage. Nicole Hudnet, Industry Segment Adviser for T-Mobile for Business says, “Connectivity is more than calling loved ones, it’s an essential service. It enables 911, power restoration, road clearing, prescription access and even grocery transactions. We don’t just restore signal. We help restore life as people know it.”
In 2005, Hurricane Wilma impacted the area of South Florida where I was living and I lost my cell service and power for about a week. I can tell you that living without cell service for a week made me feel isolated from the rest of the country and this was before the touchscreen smartphone era started two years later. Once my cell service returned (which coincided with the return of electricity), I felt much better and could breathe again.
Twenty years have passed, and things have improved so much that had Wilma taken place now, I might not have lost a single day of wireless connectivity. Just know that if you are facing a serious weather situation and you’re a T-Mobile subscriber, the carrier has the technology to keep you connected to others. In fact, all major Big 3 carriers in the U.S. have protocols they follow when a disaster happens, or there is a major weather problem.
“Iconic Phones” is coming this Fall!
Good news everyone! Over the past year we’ve been working on an exciting passion project of ours and we’re thrilled to announce it will be ready to release in just a few short months.
