Verizon Keeps Southern California Wildfire Evacuees Connected

[Ironwalt]

Press Release Source: Verizon


Verizon Keeps Southern California Wildfire Evacuees Connected With Free Call-Forwarding
Monday October 22, 2:06 pm ET
Company Offers Service to Customers Affected by the Malibu Fire


THOUSAND OAKS, Calif., Oct. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Verizon customers who have evacuated their homes because of the Malibu wildfire can add call forwarding to their account at no charge as part of the company's efforts to help those in need cope with the disaster.

"Staying in touch with family and friends is more important than ever during times of crisis, and free call-forwarding will help our customers remain connected during this evacuation," said Margaret Serjak, vice president of operations for Verizon's West Coast region.

Verizon customers have been forced to evacuate, can opt -- at no charge -- to have their telephone calls automatically forwarded to a working phone number at another location where they are staying, or to a wireless number. Customers will not be billed the one-time set-up fees or monthly charges for call-forwarding, although customers will be responsible for any toll charges on forwarded calls and wireless airtime charges.

Verizon has also provided emergency telephone lines to the American Red Cross to allow evacuees to keep in touch with friends and family at no charge.

Residential customers who have been affected by the fire and want to set up call forwarding should call Verizon at 1-800-483-1000. Business customers should call 1-800-483-2000.

Damage to Verizon facilities includes cables and poles along Pacific Coast Highway, as well as in fire-affected areas of Malibu Canyon. Verizon construction crews will be working to replace damaged facilities as soon as they are able to enter the wildfire area safely.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ - News), headquartered in New York, is a leader in delivering broadband and other wireline and wireless communication innovations to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving more than 62 million customers nationwide. Verizon's Wireline operations include Verizon Business, which delivers innovative and seamless business solutions to customers around the world, and Verizon Telecom, which brings customers the benefits of converged communications, information and entertainment services over the nation's most advanced fiber-optic network. A Dow 30 company, Verizon has a diverse workforce of more than 238,000 and last year generated consolidated operating revenues of more than $88 billion. For more information, visit Verizon.com.

VERIZON'S ONLINE NEWS CENTER: Verizon news releases, executive speeches and biographies, media contacts, high quality video and images, and other information are available at Verizon's News Center on the World Wide Web at Verizon.com. To receive news releases by e-mail, visit the News Center and register for customized automatic delivery of Verizon news releases.




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Source: Verizon

[RJB]

You know times like this make me wish every carrier could run off each other in times like this. Even though some carriers might have towers in the area what if they burnt and there was one on another that didnt you know?

[larry]

Sprint was hit hard by the fires. They were the only carrier to have a tower in Green Valley Lake which was probably lost in the Running Springs/Arrowhead fire. They were also the only carrier to have complete coverage on Del Dios Highway in San Diego County which was right in the heart of that fire. I suspect they lost more sites than any other carrier in the fires overall.

[Fred333]

Did not know that. Poor Sprint.