Verizon Keeps the Mountain West Connected During Historic Wildfire Season

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The record-setting 2015 wildfire season in the American West has already burned more than eight million acres, and with dry conditions forecasted to continue into the fall, state and federal resources are streched thinner than ever.

In Idaho alone, wildfires have burned more than 712,000 acres. Several fires have shut down portions of Montana’s Glacier National Park, and other wilderness areas after consuming hundreds of thousands of acres. Other states across the west, including California, Washington, Oregon and Alaska have suffered an unprecedented number of wildfires this year.

It has made for a very busy season for Verizon’s Crisis Response Teams which have mobilized throughout the West to activate smartphones, jetpacks, routers, mobile cell sites and more to help firefighters.

Emergency crews and coordinators at the Incident Command Post battling Montana’s Bear Lake Fire have relied on a Verizon Cell on Wheels (COW) deployed especially to broaden voice coverage.  In Idaho, a Verizon Repeater on A Trailer (RAT) has helped the Incident Command Post and emergency crews battling the Tepee Springs fire stay connected. Verizon teams have also provided wireless hot spots and devices to emergency crews working on the Soda and Cougar Fires in Owyhee County and southwest of Warm Lake, respectively.

The Verizon Wireless network proves its ability to recover quickly in disaster and crisis situations time after time. Always being prepared is central to the company’s culture and goals of keeping customers connected when it matters most.

Verizon Wireless offers these tips to help you stay safe, connected and informed prior to and during an emergency. 

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