Three days into the aftermath of Sandy, wireless service is still lacking in parts of New York City and other hard-hit areas, according to people living in those areas. The carriers have been struggling to keep their services running, mostly because of the loss of power. But they say they have been making progress. Here's what they have to report.
Verizon Wireless said its network improved a bit. On Thursday, its corporate spokesman, Thomas Pica, said 96 percent of its network “from Maine to Virginia†was operating, up from 94 percent on Wednesday.
While that looks like a great number, Verizon is describing the whole Northeast, even the areas that didn't have network problems to begin with. Another way to look at those numbers: 4 percent of Verizon's cell sites are not operating in the Northeast, down from 6 percent Wednesday. Between Wednesday and Thursday, Verizon shrank the portion of its network that was not operating by 33 percent. The company's state ment:
In terms of our network, we have seen continued improvement overnight with now more than 96 percent of our cell sites in service and serving our customers in the impacted area, including some of the hardest hit areas of the Northeast.
Verizon Wireless continues to deploy its mobile disaster recovery and emergency network assets, including cell sites on wheels and mobile generators, to fortify our network throughout the Northeast where telecommunications infrastructure, utility/power and/or flood damage are issues.
AT&T made a vague statement about its progress in troubled areas and declined to provide statistics. But it said it had made an agreement with Michael Bloomberg, mayor of New York City, to roll out RVs where people can charge their phones. Mr. Bloomberg has said AT&T would also provide satellite hot spots to shore up its network, although the details on that are not yet clear. AT&T's statement:
Di saster response teams from AT&T are fully engaged and making progress in restoring wireless and wireline services in areas affected by Hurricane Sandy. The company is closely aligned with state and local officials and emergency response teams, monitoring service disruptions and coordinating our restoration efforts.
The vast majority of our cell sites in the Northeast are online and working. We are making progress in areas that were especially hard-hit, including New York City and New Jersey, where flooding, power loss, transportation and debris all pose challenges. We are working around the clock, including conducting ongoing damage assessment, rapid deployment of generators and equipment, and movement of key personnel from around the region and country, such as engineers and technicians, in order to restore service as quickly as possible.
Sprint was clearer about the status of its network, specifically in troubled areas, saying 25 percent of its net work was still down in New York City. It said on Wednesday night that it had made improvements but still faces challenges.
We have made significant progress in restoring service to our customers across the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern U.S., but our biggest obstacle remains obtaining backhaul connections and commercial power. In New York City, for example, we have restored service to approximately three-quarters of our network, but challenges remain in parts of Manhattan most severely impacted by the storm.
T-Mobile USA, too, had some details. It said on Wednesday night that 15 percent of its network in New York City was down, and that in Staten Island 20 percent was still down.
