OVERLAND PARK, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sprint (NYSE:S) is preparing its network, mobilizing Network Disaster Recovery staff, and staging Sprint Emergency Response Team (ERT) resources along the Gulf Coast as Hurricane Isaac continues to gain strength as a Category 1 storm and head towards the states of Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi.
Ahead of the 2012 hurricane season, Sprint invested more than $100 million to increase capacity and expand its wireless networks in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi, including approximately $44 million in the New Orleans market, close to $2 million along Mississippi’s Gulf Coast and $1.4 million along Alabama’s Gulf Coast.
Sprint’s continued preparations for Hurricane Isaac include:
- Fully fueling all permanent generators and working to ensure the availability of portable generators as necessary to meet the response needs based on Isaac’s current track and intensity.
- Fully fueling all network Points of Presence (POP) – the facilities where traffic enters and leaves the company’s global IP network, which facilitate dedicated data services for Sprint’s corporate and government customers, as well as other critical communications.
- Ensuring Sprint network reservist strike teams are on standby and ready to deploy following Isaac’s landfall.
- Activating Sprint ERT’s 25 wireless devices with service free of charge for 14 days for state and local agencies needing emergency communication assistance in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi following the official state of emergency that has been declared in these states.
- Preparing and mobilizing the Sprint Emergency Response Team’s SatCOLT (Satellite Cell on Light Truck) assets, mobile phone and broadband devices, staff and other equipment at its hubs in Texas and Florida to deploy needed resources to local first responders, emergency command centers and other public safety officials.
Additionally, with the aid of Sprint’s 3G/4G wireless service and mobile devices, weather data and hurricane awareness expert, Mark Sudduth of HurricaneTrack.com, is providing a live online stream of Isaac’s landfall from the coast of Gulfport, Miss.
Since 2001, Sprint has worked with Sudduth and his team to provide live, quick and seamless reporting during every hurricane season. Sprint has supplied HurricaneTrack.com with Sprint 3G and 4G mobile phones and broadband devices for fast and reliable mobile broadband connectivity for its in-the-field data collection and online video reporting. Sudduth is based in Wilmington, N.C., and has reported on more than 50 named tropical storms and hurricanes along the Atlantic Coast since 1998.
Wireless consumers residing in Isaac’s projected path are also encouraged to use the following tips to prepare for a hurricane, severe flood or other natural disasters:
- Keep your wireless phone and backup batteries fully charged, and be aware that an interruption of wireline and commercial power could affect wireless calls.
- If possible, get extra batteries and charge them.
- In times of commercial power outages, a car adapter for your wireless phone should enable you to recharge the battery.
- Keep phones and necessary accessories in a sealed plastic bag to avoid water damage.
- Load family and emergency numbers into your wireless phone.
- Use your Sprint camera phone to take digital pictures or video of your property and valuables before the storm hits, so you have "before" pictures in the event of any storm damage.
- Wireless networks sometimes experience heavy traffic during emergency events, so rather than call, remember to use Sprint® Direct Connect® or send a text message.
In addition to the $100 million invested to increase capacity, Sprint is also deploying Network Vision. Customers in select markets are beginning to enjoy the benefits of Network Vision, an all-new nationwide 3G/4G network. This new network provides better 3G service – with a stronger wireless signal, faster data speeds, expanded coverage and better in-building performance – and a 4G LTE network with faster speeds for data applications.
For more information about Sprint’s hurricane preparation efforts, retail store closings, and to learn what you can do to prepare for a major storm, visit www.sprint.com/hurricaneinformation. Public safety officials seeking information about services from the Sprint Emergency Response Team should call 1-888-639-0020, email ERTRequests@sprint.com, or visit Sprint ERT’s Facebook page.
About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 56 million customers at the end of the second quarter of 2012 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. The American Customer Satisfaction Index rated Sprint No. 1 among all national carriers in customer satisfaction and most improved, across all 47 industries, during the last four years. Newsweek ranked Sprint No. 3 in its 2011 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nation’s greenest companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.