# Phones during disasters



## weedygarden (Apr 27, 2011)

Most of us are aware that phone service will go away in a SHTF situation. The type of situation makes a difference is when and to what degree service will be affected.

When I was living in Kansas City during the flood of 1977, I was not able to make a phone call for more than 15 hours. When I picked up the receiver, there was no dial tone. There are only so many lines available, and if the lines are all being used, you do not have access to service.

Has anyone else had any experience with this or can add input that could help us in a future situation?


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## sgtusmc98 (Sep 8, 2013)

A few months ago AT&T lost service through a lot of middle TN it freaked out a lot of people even though it was only a day. I didn't notice, I'm not sure if it didn't affect me or I just liked not getting bothered but it did make radios look better to some around here.


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## weedygarden (Apr 27, 2011)

sgtusmc98 said:


> A few months ago AT&T lost service through a lot of middle TN it freaked out a lot of people even though it was only a day. I didn't notice, I'm not sure if it didn't affect me or I just liked not getting bothered but it did make radios look better to some around here.


Our young people especially will be hysterical when phone service goes down. Many adults will also!

Now to really figure out which radios and how to get necessary people on board using them!


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## hiwall (Jun 15, 2012)

I could certainly understand someone getting upset during an event if they could not get in contact with their loved ones. 
Once united with my immediate family I could care less about the phone service.
Radios would be an answer but I feel that for me 2-way communications is fairly low on my list.


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## sgtusmc98 (Sep 8, 2013)

weedygarden said:


> Our young people especially will be hysterical when phone service goes down. Many adults will also!
> 
> Now to really figure out which radios and how to get necessary people on board using them!


I already use amateur radio so that's what I would pick, there are many options but it would be best to have a practiced plan and for me that's hard, none of my family will use them so I would have to rely on relay to find out about them which will take time. All the same I feel confident eventually I can find something out, the hf would let me get out of my area and to someone who might have a phone that works as well or at least to get info.


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## Cotton (Oct 12, 2013)

I have short wave and ham listening capability. Over the past few years I’ve bought up more than a few CB’s and antennas at yard sales. My intent is that in a grid down situation I’ll pass them out over a 200 square mile area to folks with a solar (or other) means of producing energy. A community is what it takes to build from a disaster.


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## TheLazyL (Jun 5, 2012)

Because telephone equipment is expensive and quickly outdated our local Telco has a ratio of 8 to 1. For every 8 customers, there is 1 outside line. This works because during normal situations, all of their customers are not all trying to make calls at the same time. During a storm or panic the normal ratio just went down the tubes, "All circuits are busy".

When the daughter was in high school, I got home from work and was immediately confronted by the wife. Your daughter been talking on the phone for over an hour, will not get off and I (wife) need to make an important call!

I knock on the daughter's bedroom door and tell her she needs to get off the phone, mom needs to make a call. "Just a minute", I'm told.

I walk down to the furnace room, look at my note taped beside the telephone block. #8 is the line that goes to the daughter's room, I unplug it.

Walk back to the daughter's room, she's still talking. Hmm. Maybe I unplugged the wrong one? Went back to the furnace room to double check, #8 is the right line and it is unplugged.

Almost made it back to the daughter's bedroom when she screamed! "DAD!" She was talking for 5 minutes to a dead phone. 

Wife spent the next 1 1/2 hours on the phone telling a girl friend what all happen since yesterday's update. I wonder where the daughter learned her phone manners?


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## Viking (Mar 16, 2009)

I grew up with rotary dial phones, my grandmother that lived in a small rural community still had the old crank phone for a number of years, I'd guess that the old relay systems for dialing were pretty high maintenance, but, on the other hand, they were simple compared to the electronic systems of today and were probably not so sensitive to EMP's or moderate solar activity. Sometimes it's hard for me to think of all the radio transmissions going on at any given time with millions of people throughout the world constantly on their cell phones, I often wonder if at some time this will reach critical mass and one day everything just quits, maybe it's just wishful thinking on my part, as I see cell phone usage by many as an addiction and I wonder just what might happen in their lives if it's no longer available. We have a cell phone, a Net 10, bottom end tech, always off, mainly for emergency use or a quick call to see if friends are home while we are in town and want to visit them, great thing is, it uses any companies cell tower, so it has a very large area of coverage. Because of our preparations, if the phone system goes down, we'll be fine.


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## Fn/Form (Nov 6, 2008)

hiwall said:


> I could certainly understand someone getting upset during an event if they could not get in contact with their loved ones.
> Once united with my immediate family I could care less about the phone service.
> Radios would be an answer but I feel that for me 2-way communications is fairly low on my list.


If you don't currently use a phone of any sort, you're 100% secluded and secure for all situations and don't plan on helping or getting help from anyone else then I have to trust your judgement on that.

Or maybe you have some radios stashed away and I'm reading that comment wrong.


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## musketjim (Dec 7, 2011)

We still have rotary phones and land lines. Anything short of an EMP and the cell phone still has uses, flashlight, camera,calculator. I also have the Bible on my phone. Probably a hundred more apps. I don't know about.


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## Fn/Form (Nov 6, 2008)

Has anyone tried the short range apps that turn a pair of cell phones into short distance 2-way radios? I have a few old smartphones, I'll give it a try if no one else can tell me yea/nay.

ETA: If these are bluetooth the range won't be good. I wonder if anyone has an app to use the 1900MHz radios and such.


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## txcatlady (Sep 26, 2013)

Our phones are out again. They went out last week when it rained and now they went out yesterday when it rained. Must have a hole in conduit and shorting out. Got struck by lightening last month and blue flames blew out of landline phone. Bought two new phones and the portable is dead in the water. Lightening also blew out the pump on our big blue pool. I love this rain. We got 3 3/4 inches last week and 1 3/4 inches last night. But this is getting expensive. Doctor was to call and set up heart cath for husband Friday. Dead phones. Our cells will ring if we are outside or certain places in house. Otherwise we would get rid of landlines.


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## tsrwivey (Dec 31, 2010)

It is hard to get a land line or use a cell phone before, during & after a big hurricane. We generally had the best luck early in the morning. Most of the young people text & rarely talk on the phone. That may be a huge benefit in a disaster. 

My kids & grandkids are 15-20 minutes away, if I need to talk to them I'll just drive there. If there's a disaster, they're all coming here via predetermined routes. I would still like to be able to actually hear their voice & not have to wait for them to get here.


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## Fn/Form (Nov 6, 2008)

Fn/Form said:


> Has anyone tried the short range apps that turn a pair of cell phones into short distance 2-way radios? I have a few old smartphones, I'll give it a try if no one else can tell me yea/nay.
> 
> ETA: If these are bluetooth the range won't be good. I wonder if anyone has an app to use the 1900MHz radios and such.


I have found only add-on transceivers for smartphones. They cost more than a dedicated radio or device. Neat concepts on some like the beartooth, but they cost more than a very nice, separate radio.

I was surprised to find no obvious solutions for using the 1900MHz radio built in my smartphone. I don't know if it's because the radio control is pre-packaged... or if no one has publicly rooted and controlled such a radio.

The only value would be an alternate app that could turn all of them into really expensive, low performance walkie talkies.


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