Today, T-Mobile US, Inc. and Sprint Corporation committed to the Federal Communications Commission that they would take a series of significant steps if the companies’ merger application is approved. That move caused Chairman Ajit Pai to recommend to his colleagues that the FCC approve the proposed $26 billion deal. Commissioner Brendan Carr agreed, stating: “Approving this combination will help the …
Threatening to kill FCC chief’s family lands caller in jail for 18 months
A California man was sentenced today to more than one and a half years in prison for threatening to kill the family of Ajit Pai, Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. “Threatening to actually kill a federal official’s family because of a disagreement over policy is not only inexcusable, it is criminal,” said G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the …
300-foot fall is fatal to Arkansas tower technician, father of two
Services will be held Monday morning for tower technician Christopher Hawkins, 34, of Caraway, AR who passed away Thursday after falling from a 300-foot guyed tower in Brookhaven, Miss. Visitation for the father of two children will be at Monette Church of Christ, 702 Drew Ave., Monette, AR at 10 a.m. followed by services at 11:00 a.m. Burial will follow at …
Panel affirms Illinois site acquisition attorney should be suspended over forged docs
An Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (ARDC) review board on May 15, 2019, upheld a previous hearing board’s findings of dishonesty against Robert Ronald Czarnik, an attorney for the site acquisition law firm Lora, Chanthadouangsy, and Castellano (LCC), and suspended him for four months. ARDC had previously brought a five-count complaint against Czarnik, charging him with, among other things, …
Recent rescue raises concerns about climbers’ ability to rescue their fellow workers
On May 6, 2019, a tower technician employed by Infinity Construction Solutions, Inc. called 911 to rescue his unnamed coworker off a monopole in Georgia. A Gwinnett County Fire and Emergency Services spokesperson informed Wireless Estimator that it took two hours to perform the “methodical” rescue. He was then transported to a hospital. They did not provide the extent of …
Commish’s push for rural broadband was scripted 122 years ago
FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, the agency’s point man for encouraging why and how the country should unite in order for the US to become the world’s leader in rolling out 5G, retweeted a 122- year-old article (below) from The Daily Northwestern lamenting phone dependency, a “disease from which friends or those afflicted suffer.” Fast-forward to 2020 and the irony of …
NATE industry advocates hit the Hill running at full speed
With new members of the 116th Congress having had the opportunity to settle in, NATE members reached out to them as well as seasoned legislators to inform them of their company’s efforts and roadblocks in building out 5G as well as maintaining the nation’s communications networks. The inaugural fly-in was initiated by NATE Executive Director Todd Schlekeway. Prior to being …
Nation’s site component selections expand with Connect-It Wireless joining the Valmont Site Pro 1 family
Site Pro 1, an industry-leading manufacturer and distributor of wireless site components and safety products, announced today that it has acquired the operational assets of Connect-It Wireless, distributor of wireless site components in the United States. Connect-It Wireless will operate under the Valmont Site Pro 1 brand. Connect-It Wireless, founded in 2003, quickly became one of the industry’s key providers …
5G was rushed to market – It shows, leads Fast-Forward Friday
Article Media 5G was rushed to market – It shows Light Reading Syracuse takes steps to address uncertainty over 5G wireless network Syracuse.com FCC: Lack of coordinantion extended hurricane-related wireless outages Multichannel Broadband internet looms large in county commission election Government Technology Montana Governor vetoes bill creating tax abatement for high-speed broadband KPAX CenturyLink focused on fiber strategy, advisors hired …
Florida tower approval ends dueling engineers, begins life-saving communications network
Broward County Florida Commissioners yesterday approved a 325-foot communications tower in West Lake Park in Hollywood, a controversial site required to complete a new $59.5 million network awarded to Motorola Systems that is expected to be up and running by year’s end. County officials have been criticized for not moving faster to replace the county’s old and overloaded system that reached …
Georgia firefighters come to the aid of an injured tower tech
Georgia firefighters were able to rescue an injured tower technician who could not climb down the monopole he was working on Monday afternoon. An individual knowledgeable of the accident said the injured worker was employed by Infinity Construction of Georgia. The company did not respond to multiple requests for information. The worker was injured while climbing the tower in the …
School cancer concerns routed from RF to PR blunder then carcinogens in H2O and vapor
When four children were diagnosed with cancer at a San Joaquin County, Calif. elementary school earlier this year, parents – rightfully concerned – went for the usual maligned suspect – RF radiation from a cell tower on a school campus. However, after the Ripon School District tested the RF levels at Weston Elementary school three times, and found exposure levels …
Nebraska tower foundation driller’s employee electrocuted in Virginia
A tower foundation drilling company worker died on April 26, 2019, after being electrocuted on a jobsite, according to individuals knowledgeable of the April 22, 2019 incident that occurred in Accomac, Va. Kevlin Finck, 30, of Nebraska, employed by Dietzel Enterises, Inc. of Omaha, was at a construction site when a track-mounted drill rig reportedly had a winch line come …
Bryan Lanier and David Hawkins to shepherd industry’s TR-14 standards committee
The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), the leading association representing the manufacturers and suppliers of high-tech communications networks, announced the election of a new chair and vice-chair to lead its TR-14 Structural Standards for Communication and Small Wind Turbine Support Structures Engineering Committee. Bryan Lanier, Director, Customer Engineering at American Tower Corp., Raleigh, N.C. will lead TR-14 for a two-year term …
ANSI/TIA-222 – the design bible for towers – steps proudly into its sixth decade of guidance
This year, TIA is proudly celebrating the 60th anniversary of providing guidance in the structural design and fabrication of communications towers with their engineering standard ANSI/TIA-222, Structural Steel Standards for Steel Antenna Towers and Supporting Structures. The ANSI/TIA-222 standard is well known among those who build new communications towers or modify old structures, but for those that may be less familiar, here …
$2 trillion infrastructure proposal will have a welcomed emphasis on broadband
The wireless construction industry could get a welcomed shot in the arm since broadband is expected to be part of the $2 trillion spending plan on infrastructure that President Donald Trump agreed to in a meeting with Democratic leaders today after he met with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer at the White House to begin …
NCOSH casting a wide net in its investigation of a fiber installation explosion that killed two
The N.C. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health (NCOSH) is using a shotgun approach to uncover whether proper procedures were followed marking utility lines as well as drilling around those lines prior to a gas explosion on April 10 that killed a shop owner and utility employee and injured 25 other individuals. N.C. DOL Public Information Officer Mary Katherine Revels …
Sprint and T-Mobile’s urge to merge extended to July 29
According to an SEC filing, T-Mobile and Sprint have extended the deadline for completing their merger to July 29 as they continue to seek the regulatory approvals they need to complete a deal. The previous deadline had been Monday. The No. 3 and No. 4 wireless carriers announced their proposed merger on April 29, 2018. The Department of Justice’s antitrust …
Lack of towercos’ aviation compliance could result in 7,000 towers heading for the scrap yard
After three years of negotiations between the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) to address annual tower owner certification concerns hit an impasse, the NCAA said it was going to exercise its authority and if within 30 days towercos didn’t obtain statutory Aviation Height Clearance (AHC) for all of their structures …
Sprint’s 5G ‘E’ lawsuit against AT&T settled, ending what was considered a PR ploy
According to a court document obtained by Wireless Estimator, Sprint’s lawsuit against AT&T for deceptively marketing its upgraded 4G service as “5G Evolution,” has been settled. U.S. District Court Judge Vernon Broderick for the Southern District of New York said that both parties informed him during a status conference yesterday that they had reached a settlement. They’re required by tomorrow …
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