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Yesterday evening’s Hurricane Ida FCC outage report saw a marked improvement of the number of cell tower outages in the affected areas in Louisiana, dropping to 8.7% from its peak on Aug. 30, 2021 of over 52%. Out of a total of 2,759 sites, only 241 remained out of service. Communications outages for the Category 4 Hurricane will be later …
Tornado takes out an ATC 150-foot monopole as Ida winds its path of destruction through the northeast
An American Tower Corp. (ATC) 150-foot monopole collapsed Wednesday when a Hurricane Ida-spawned tornado tore through Upper Dublin Township in Pennsylvania. Although the structure was designed and constructed in 2008 with a basic wind speed of 90 mph as required EIA/TIA-222 Rev. G, the structure was no match for the EF-2 tornado that touched down in the township with winds …
AT&T claims an above average restoration percentage as carriers bring sites back up in Louisiana
Through the dedicated resources of the men and women on the front lines providing logistics and services, cell site outages in Hurricane Ida-affected parishes in Louisiana have been reduced to 28.5%, from Tuesday’s 38.1%, according to the FCC’s September 1, 2021 daily communications report. Within a day, hard-hit Assumption Parish went from an outage of 94.7% to 42.1%, with Terrebonne …
Carriers spin their outages as 38% of Louisiana’s cell sites remain crippled
The FCC reported yesterday evening that Hurricane Ida is still taking its toll on communications, although outages are down from Monday’s report. Louisiana was the hardest hit state with 38% of its sites down in the affected parishes yesterday. Although outages were previously at 52%, Assumption and Terrebonne Parishes are still at or near 100%. There were only 3 damaged cell …
Louisiana’s tallest tower collapse adds to Ida broadcasting outages
A 1,999-foot tower owned by iHeart Media and broadcasting its FM station KVDU collapsed in Vacherie, LA after Hurricane Ida trounced the state with high winds. Only the bottom 160-feet remain standing. No injuries were reported by iHeart. Cumulus Media also shares the tower with WZRH-FM. The structure is located in St. James Parish where the FCC’s most recent report …
Ida cripples mobile service in Louisiana, taking out over half of the state’s affected cell sites
The FCC reported yesterday evening that Hurricane Ida, roaring ashore in Louisiana on Sunday as a Category 4 storm with a peak gust of 172 mph, just short of the strongest measured wind from a hurricane in the U.S., has taken 28.1% of the cell sites in the affected area out of service. However, that number includes counties in Alabama …
Authorities disable signal-jamming devices in California; FCC could fine resident $112,500
Morgan Hill, CA police said the Santa Clara County Emergency Communications Department reported a signal was “disrupting, impeding and interfering” with public safety calls, requiring an investigation. Authorities noticed interference at a communication tower for the last six months. However, in the last week, it had gotten worse, with residents reporting disruptions to Wi-Fi, satellite, and cell phone service. Investigators …
AT&T’s says its network was walloped by Hurricane Ida
Many people in Southeast Louisiana with AT&T have no phone service after Hurricane Ida tore through the area Sunday, losing about 40% of its network. Verizon said the company was “still actively assessing the situation on the ground as it is safe to do so.” Although they are seeing sites out of service in the heaviest hit areas, overlapping sites …
It’s possible the infrastructure bill will require tower techs and other workers to receive huge pay increases
Since the text of the infrastructure bill was released earlier this month, industry media have been surgically dissecting the limited details in the $1.2 trillion act that provides $65 billion for the nation’s broadband development. What is known is that $42.45 billion will be funneled to states to fund projects each state approves independently, if their telecommunications provider can offer speeds …
Pittsburgh announces $10 million agreement with Crown Castle for fiber network for 131 city facilities
Mayor William Peduto has announced an agreement with Crown Castle to provide the first unified fiber connectivity network for city facilities as part of the NetPGH initiative. Crown Castle will help connect all 131 city facilities on a single network, including EMS stations, fire stations, recreation and healthy active living centers, and critical public safety infrastructure. Connecting all city facilities to …
You’ll love big brother watching you during the Las Vegas Tower Family Foundation charity golf event
You can get an early start to your 2022 golf season by hitting the links and participating in the Tower Family Foundation Golf Event, Powered by NATE’s Wireless industry Network (WIN). And if you’re fortunate enough to hit a hole in one, there’s a good chance it will be recorded. This exciting and fun event will take place on Thursday, …
NAB and CCA conferences will require showing proof of COVID vaccine to gain entry
The National Association of Broadcasters has released a letter concerning COVID protocols for their upcoming show, Oct. 9 through 1 in Las Vegas, NV. In the letter signed by NAB EVP & Managing Director, Global Connections and Events Chris Brown, he said “we will require all attendees and participants to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination.” He said, “We think this …
The unvarnished Tennessee truth: Trained tower techs will save lives
The nation’s tower techs take pride in their work and their ability to safely rescue a fellow worker if the occasion ever arises. Most techs will spend their career never having to perform an emergency rescue on a tower, but when it’s necessary, it’s nice to know that the men and women working alongside you have you covered. Such was the case …
Catherine Piche to lead Crown Castle’s tower division as its EVP and COO
Crown Castle International Corp. has announced that Catherine Piche has been appointed to succeed Robert C. Ackerman as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer–Towers, effective September 1, 2021. Ackerman plans to retire following a 50-year career that included 23 years in various senior leadership roles at Crown Castle, and he has agreed to remain with Crown Castle in an …
Court ruling requires FCC to go back to the drawing board for a better explanation of its RF guidelines
Last Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit said the FCC’s decision in 2019 that its 1996 radio frequency emission guidelines adequately protect the public was arbitrary and capricious and not evidence based, in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act. In response to a petition by health groups led by the Environmental Health Trust that was argued on …
New York dings Frontier and RG&E $5 million each for noncompliance with pole attachment safety rules
The NYS Public Service Commission (PSC) has reached two joint settlement agreements valued at $10 million that resolve penalty amounts for alleged violations against Rochester Gas & Electric Corp. (RG&E) and Frontier Telephone of Rochester, Inc. (Frontier). The settlements reached on August 12, 2021, come after a PSC investigation found that Frontier and RG&E allowed non-conforming pole attachments to remain …
QualTek’s BACOM acquisition adds 200 new employees for its 5G build to complement its 5,000-plus workforce
QualTek, LLC, a leading turnkey provider of infrastructure services to the North American 5G wireless, telecom, and renewable energy sectors, announced that it has acquired Broken Arrow Communications Inc. (BACOM). Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico with more than 200 employees and serving customers in 11 states in the Western U.S., BACOM provides a …
FCC fines an ISP $50K for an auction-originated Facebook post, another one get $30K for an email
A troubling Facebook post and an email last year cost two broadband service providers a total of $80,000 in separate actions yesterday for violating the FCC’s rules by engaging in prohibited communications of its bidding and bidding strategies to other participants in Auction 105 involving the auction of 22,631 county-based Priority Access Licenses (PALs) in the 3550-3650 MHz portion of the …
First and only 500,000 watts broadcast tower to share its historical footprint with retailers
The iconic Blaw-Knox diamond cantilever shaped tower in Mason, Ohio, owned by Vertical Bridge, was the first and only AM structure to broadcast its WLW-AM 500,000 watts signal from coast to coast, and it will remain standing tall and cast its history on the restaurants, office buildings, public storage buildings and other businesses being built around it. Broadcasters will sometimes …
Fischer amendment on broadband will create multi-agency mapping tool for deployment
Organizations and industry groups released statements supporting an amendment sponsored by U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), a member of the Senate Commerce Committee, that passed unanimously during the Senate’s consideration of the bipartisan infrastructure package. The amendment will increase transparency by directing the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to create a publicly accessible online mapping tool for broadband infrastructure deployment. This …
