Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Emergency Communications topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Camano Island resident warns 2019 outage exposed life-or-death cellphone gaps; board says tower decisions fall to state
Summary
Stuart Hunt told the Island County Board of Commissioners a four-day 2019 outage left his neighborhood without phone service and said a single cell tower could save lives; a commissioner said tower siting and authority rest with the state and the UTC and noted a recent local tower appeal is before a hearing examiner.
Stuart Hunt, a resident of Rocky Point on Camano Island, told the Island County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 20 that a December 2019 storm produced a four-day power outage that left his neighborhood without cell or landline service and created life-or-death risks for residents who could not call for help.
"In an outage ... you can't call a neighbor, relative, or anyone. Death is a clear reality because you are out of options," Hunt said, urging the board to convene Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile and to permit a single cell tower — a neighbor has offered property for one — to restore emergency communications.
Why it matters: Hunt said roughly "2 to 3,000" people in the northwest corner of the island could be isolated in a prolonged outage. He framed the issue as one of public safety and urged the board to act quickly to secure a cell site for that area.
A county official who spoke in response said he lives in Rocky Point and recalled a shorter outage with cell coverage, encouraged residents to connect with local preparedness groups and Camano Island Fire, and noted the county's limited authority on tower siting. "Cell coverage ... has always remained under the purview of the state and the UTC," the commissioner said, adding that a recent north-end Camano tower proposal was appealed to the hearing examiner.
The exchange highlighted two competing points: residents' safety concerns over local communications during emergencies, and the county's limited legal authority to require or order carrier siting. The commissioner invited Hunt to share any written correspondence that claimed the county alone could compel carriers to locate towers; the chair asked the public to provide such documentation if it exists.
What happens next: The board did not take formal action on the request. Commissioners encouraged residents to work with neighborhood preparedness groups and emergency responders; the transcript records that the hearing examiner is reviewing a separate tower appeal and that the county's authority over tower siting is constrained by state law and utilities regulation.
