AT&T Mobilizes Team Of 2,000 For Hurricane Gustav Restoration Efforts
Company's Wireless and Wired Networks Performing Well Despite Storm Disruptions; Free AT&T Wi-Fi, GoPhones, and Other Emergency Communications Resources Being Made Available to Customers
Dallas, Texas, September 2, 2008
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) today announced that the company has mobilized significant resources for the restoration of communications and customer support across Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Texas in the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav. Nearly 2,000 AT&T personnel, including employees from half a dozen states in the Southeast, have been deployed to the affected area to assess damage and help expedite restoration efforts. Additional resources are at the ready and will be deployed as needed.
The company's wireless and wireline networks continue to perform well. Although high winds and rain affected some wireless cell sites, the majority of sites are functioning normally and customers are able to complete calls, send and receive text messages, access e-mail and connect to the Internet. AT&T's top priority is to restore affected sites to full capacity as quickly and safely as possible.
There continues to be some service outages in hard-hit areas of Louisiana, and crews are working around the clock to repair the damage and reroute the traffic.
In an effort to help residents stay in touch with family and friends during this emergency, AT&T is making emergency communications resources available, including:
- Enabling free Wi-Fi access at hundreds of hot spots in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas, including at select McDonald's restaurants, Barnes & Noble locations, and AT&T Experience StoreSM locations, among others.;
- Providing free wireless GoPhones with $15 in air time to thousands of evacuees from mandatory evacuation areas who are sheltered in affected areas in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and south Texas.
- Providing free phone calls for hurricane victims at all open company-owned retail locations across Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and portions of northwest Florida, including Pensacola, Fort. Walton and Destin.
- Installing phone banks and DSL connections for free use by evacuees who are sheltered in San Antonio.
The vast majority of AT&T wireless customers, including prepaid customers, never pay for roaming on AT&T's network. As a result, AT&T wireless customers in the impacted areas who have evacuated can use their wireless phone in AT&T coverage areas with no additional roaming fees.
In addition to emergency communications resources, AT&T is encouraging its customers to sent $5 donations to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund by sending a text message from their mobile phones. A customer simply types the keyword "GIVE" to "2HELP" (24357). A confirmation message will arrive within a few minutes, and the customer then replies YES to confirm his or her donation.
Before the arrival of Hurricane Gustav, AT&T added capacity to its wireless network to accommodate an increase in traffic, and pre-staged equipment and personnel so the company could immediately respond to affected areas. Crews are working around the clock to repair damage and re-route traffic, where necessary.
At the same time, the company is taking steps to prepare equipment and facilities for a potential strike by Tropical Storm Hanna, which could threaten the Southeastern coast of the United States. The company is identifying areas for the staging of equipment for post-storm response, testing high-capacity back-up batteries and topping off fuel for generators positioned at cell sites and switching centers.
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AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) is a premier communications holding company. Its subsidiaries and affiliates, AT&T operating companies, are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and around the world. Among their offerings are the world's most advanced IP-based business communications services and the nation's leading wireless, high speed Internet access and voice services. In domestic markets, AT&T is known for the directory publishing and advertising sales leadership of its Yellow Pages and YELLOWPAGES.COM organizations, and the AT&T brand is licensed to innovators in such fields as communications equipment. As part of its three-screen integration strategy, AT&T is expanding its TV entertainment offerings. In 2008, AT&T again ranked No. 1 on Fortune magazine's World's Most Admired Telecommunications Company list and No. 1 on America's Most Admired Telecommunications Company list. Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at www.att.com.
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