The FCC has requested that Verizon investigate the cause of the failure of approximately 10,000 wireless calls to 911 centers in Maryland during the January 26, 2011 snowstorm. Verizon will assess the problem, discover remedies, and implement solutions to restore the network operations if future problems occur.
The failure was far from minor, with nine out of 10 Verizon circuits in Prince George's County failing to go through in a five-hour timeframe. The result was 8,300 blocked calls in Montgomery County and 1,700 in Prince George's County on the evening of the January 26th. Similar cases have been reported, including calls being blocked from reaching a 911 call center in Fairfax County, Virginia on the same date.
The failure was far from minor, with nine out of 10 Verizon circuits in Prince George's County failing to go through in a five-hour timeframe. The result was 8,300 blocked calls in Montgomery County and 1,700 in Prince George's County on the evening of the January 26th. Similar cases have been reported, including calls being blocked from reaching a 911 call center in Fairfax County, Virginia on the same date.
In the letter from Jamie Barnett, Rear Admiral (ret.) and Chief of the FCC's Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, Verizon is requested to investigate and answer for the following questions:
- Is the problem localized to the 911 call centers using the Hyattsville and Rockville, Maryland selective routers?
- Was this the same problem that occurred in Fairfax County, Virginia?
- Can this problem occur elsewhere in the nation?
- Has this problem occurred in other states and if so, in which states?
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