Re: Phone questions

I know the feeling, Barb! I don't know where we would have been without our
cell phone and car charger during and in the weeks following Ike. Because
our land line worked (I suspect a lot of other folks' lines worked, too;
they just didn't have umbilical cord phones stashed in the linen closet like
we did), we used our land line in conjunction with our local city government
to coordinate volunteers with people who needed help, which made it pretty
much inaccessible for any other use, so we used cell phones to keep up with
our families and friends and also to talk to each other while we walked the
streets to pass out flyers and look for people in need of help. It was
great, because we could call other voluteers and give them names and
addresses of people who needed food, water, and ice, and they'd be there
with supplies pretty quickly. Things were pretty rough for a lot of people,
and without cell phones, most of them would have been completely cut off
from the outside world. The service stayed pretty good with most providers,
from what I saw. It was a little hard to get through in the hours
immediately after the storm; I assumed that was from high call volume. The
most common problem I saw was that too many people didn't have either a car
charger or generator and had no way to charge their phones when the
batteries ran out. Since it was possible to get gas in our area if you were
willing to wait in line long enough, there were several of us who charged
our phones in my car every day, and there were quite a few people who had
generators who let people charge their phones at their homes. I believe
cell phones have made a huge contribution to disaster survival!

Interesting info re the cell phone tower backup batteries, Bob. I want to
find out more about that. Thanks!

Anne

"Barbara Carlson" <bbcarlson@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:y4WdnTBP9NzMR_zXnZ2dnUVZ_qWdnZ2d@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
During Hurricane Andrew we were without power for 3 1/2 weeks, and without
telephone service for more than 3 months. That is when we got our first
cell phone (The "brick"). We had a car charger, and also a generator, so
we could charge the phone, and while the circuits were often busy, we were
able to use the phone the whole time. By then we were hooked, but thank
goodness the "brick" has been downsized!

Barb C.
"Bob" <tooslow42@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:MPG.24caf008e3e0fa1d98968c@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
In article <ca4a3032-9b94-4790-8b75-d9e9c62b1727
@q40g2000prh.googlegroups.com>, medlawtrans@xxxxxxxxxxx says...
On Jul 16, 6:20=A0pm, RMJCMT <RMJCMT.3vg...@no-
mx.forums.yourdomain.com.au> wrote:
<< Since I don't have a cell phone or want one >>

Judity, why don't you just bite the bullet and get a cell phone? I've
had one for almost 10 years and would be lost without it. Like you I
drive around all by myself and it is comforting to know I can call for
help on the road (even though I feel pretty safe with my .357 magnum
and
concealed weapon carry permit - hee hee). The pistol can't call AAA
for
help though. A while back I stopped for gas and discovered a flat
tire.
When you call AAA for help they need a number to call you back and
most
pay phones don't accept incoming calls.

I have a cell and am thinking about doing away with my land line since
I seldom use it. I have a great plan with Verizon. I don't use the
cell
much so my plan gives me 100 weekday minutes and 600 night and weekend
minutes a month for $25. No texting or camera phone though, just a
PHONE
to talk on. It does have a voice kit though. I can say "call Tracie
cell" and it will dial my daughter. Ha... guess when I make most of my
calls?

--
RMJCMT
------------------------------------------------------------------------
RMJCMT's Profile:http://www.scribera.org/forum/member.php?userid=3D337
View this thread:http://www.scribera.org/forum/showthread.php?t=3D7461

You need a land line. If the power goes out, cell phones and computer
line phones will not work.

Sue,
This is not quite true. If the power goes out, your cell phone will
work as long as its battery lasts any cell tower within usable range
still has power. As a result of people depending upon cell phones
during Hurricanes and other emergencies, the FCC is requiring all cell
phone providers to outfit their towers with battery backup. I'm afraid
I don't recall how long the batteries are required to last in case of
an outage and I don't recall the date when the FCC said this must be
completed.

Bob/Texas




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