Verizon stands ready for 2022 wildfire season
June 08 2022 - 8:00AM
The 2022 wildfire season got off to an early start with record
breaking fires that ravaged large swaths of the American Southwest
beginning in April. For people who reside in the West, living with
the threat of wildfire during much of the year has become part of
the new normal. At Verizon, preparing for wildfires, natural
disasters, extreme weather and other emergency situations is
something we do all year long to keep communities and first
responders connected when it matters most.
Wildfire season is well underway with the hottest and driest
months on the horizon, and Verizon’s Response Team is ready.
Experts predict another active fire season, so teams of Verizon
engineers have been preparing by running emergency drills, testing
fiber and cell site readiness, and ensuring recovery equipment is
in place. Verizon Frontline and the Verizon Frontline Response Team
also stand ready to provide first responders who will be on the
front lines of potential disaster response efforts with the
mission-critical communications capabilities they’ll need.
Verizon is prepared to keep people
connected
Recognized for reliability, Verizon’s extreme network is
designed to withstand wildfires, natural disasters and extreme
weather, and delivers superior service by including redundancy on
critical paths and components to avoid a potential failure of a
network component significantly affecting customers. The use of
battery and generator backup systems in critical locations such as
macro cell sites, switch locations and network operations centers
also serves to minimize the risk of disruption if commercial power
is lost. All of Verizon macro cell sites have backup battery power
and 78% have backup generators. Verizon engineers have been
preparing for the coming season by ensuring fuel levels are high on
all generators at cell sites, testing battery back-ups at network
facilities, positioning extra equipment in case additional capacity
is needed, and prepping emergency crews to respond quickly to any
network issue.
In case emergency network recovery becomes necessary, Verizon is
prepared to respond quickly. Verizon maintains a fleet of over 500
portable assets, including fully functional, generator-powered
cells sites that can replace or enhance network coverage and
capacity in a given area as well as drones and a fixed wing
aircraft that can provide service from the sky above. Additionally,
Verizon boasts an industry-leading 150 satellite-based portable
network assets that can be used in case fiber connection is lost
due to loss of commercial power or physical damage. Those assets
include mid-Earth orbit and geosynchronous assets. All of those
mobile assets are complemented by nearly a thousand portable
generators and a comprehensive refueling program.
Verizon Frontline is ready to support
first responders
The Verizon Frontline Response Team stands ready to deploy in
support of public safety agencies nationwide to ensure they have
the mission-critical communications capabilities they need when
responding to wildfires and severe weather events. In 2021, the
team responded to 128 named wildfires, delivering more than 2,000
Verizon Frontline solutions to first responders in nearly 200
communities across 16 states.
Composed of many former first responders and military veterans,
the Verizon Frontline Response Team provides on-demand, emergency
assistance during crisis situations to public safety agencies and
emergency responders. The team is available 24/7 to deliver Verizon
Frontline technologies including portable cell sites, drones,
charging stations, WiFi hotspots, and other Verizon Frontline
devices and solutions that enable communications and/or boost
network performance.
Verizon Frontline is the advanced network and technology built
for first responders – developed over nearly three decades of
partnership with public safety officials and agencies on the front
lines – to meet their unique and evolving needs.
Are you ready for a
wildfire?
Verizon’s retail team stands ready to assist customers and
ensure they have the right devices, accessories and connectivity
they’ll need to prepare for extended power outages, mandatory
evacuation orders, and other extreme circumstances. And convenient
options like locker, curbside and in-store pickup provide quick
ways to get what you need and get out.
In addition to the right tech, you’ll also want to take steps to
ensure your family is prepared for the season as well. When
wildfire risk is high:
- Keep devices protected: While many phones
today are some degree of water resistant, you still want to take
some extra care to ensure phones, tablets, batteries, chargers and
other equipment remain dry and accessible. Plastic zipper storage
bags help shield devices, and there are weatherproof phones, phone
cases and other protective accessories available.
- Keep devices fully charged: Make sure your
device is ready when you need it by keeping phone and tablet
batteries fully charged in case commercial power goes out.
- Get some backup: When power is out for an
extended period of time, portable battery packs can be a
game-changer to ensure you remain connected. Don’t forget your car
chargers as well in case you need to evacuate.
- Create a list: Keep a list of emergency
numbers in your phone so that you have them if needed.
- Be prepared for loss: Take pictures of
valuables and other important belongings for possible insurance
claims. And make sure they’re uploaded to the cloud so you have a
backup.
- Review checklists: Review the wildfire safety
recommendations and other resources from the American Red
Cross.
- Download useful apps: There are plenty of free
wildfire notification, weather, news, and safety-related apps
available for download to your smartphone.
Business continuity is
critical
The need for a secure, stable connection for business continuity
is never more apparent than during wildfire season, extreme weather
events and other emergency situations. This is especially important
with today’s increasingly common hybrid-work environments, in which
highly distributed and mobile workforces are reliant on remote
collaboration and digital networking tools to do business across
wide and local areas simultaneously.
Verizon’s suite of business solutions provides continuity of
service for customers, from SD-WAN, to advanced security tools, to
cloud and edge applications and the BlueJeans by Verizon video
collaboration platform, fixed-wireless Internet for primary or
backup connectivity. Verizon’s network-as-a-service strategy gives
customers the flexibility to scale services as they require so that
they’re ready for anything.
As businesses launch their in-office and at-home hybrid
operations, now is a great time to assess readiness plans ahead of
storm season. Suggested steps for businesses and government
organizations include:
- Make sure you have contact information updated and readily
available for all employees, including at-home information for
remote workers and branch information for satellite offices.
- Stress-test primary and backup networks and shore up any weak
areas
- Make copies of insurance documents, review insurance coverages
and update as appropriate.
- Ensure employees working from home have documented all
corporate equipment being used to work from home in case of damage
or loss.
- Ensure backup plans are in place to shift work in case
work-from-home employees in a fire-impacted area have to evacuate
their home or their home loses commercial power for an extended
period.
Verizon supports its employees in
critical times
The VtoV Employee Relief Fund is a charity that provides aid for
Verizon employees displaced from their homes due to natural
disasters - such as fire, flood, hurricane, severe weather - or
domestic violence. Since its inception in 2013, VtoV has provided
over $4.7 Million in grants to more than 4,400 Verizon employees
around the world. The grants are used toward food, clothing,
shelter and other necessities during life-changing disasters. In
addition to the generosity our employees show in support of their
fellow V Teamers, Verizon Foundation offers a generous matching
gift program with 100% of every donation going directly to help a V
Teamer in need, because Verizon pays all administrative fees.
**Editor’s Note: We have b-roll, pictures and additional
information on our emergency response equipment available at our
Media Resource Center -
https://www.verizon.com/about/news/media-resources
Media contact: Heidi
Flatoheidi.flato@verizon.com925.324.8692@heidiflato
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