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Council discusses cellular outages, FirstNet failures and steps to improve resiliency
Summary
Officials said recent cellular and FirstNet interruptions have hindered emergency response; an emergency-management official described the lack of redundant network feeds and Pine Belt Wireless plans to add a line connecting Thomasville to Grove Hill to improve resilience.
Council members described repeated cellular outages that interrupted emergency communications and public safety coordination. The Mayor recounted a recent callout where FirstNet phones could not get service and said the council has been pressing AT&T for solutions.
"We couldn't get any service from our FirstNet phones," the Mayor said, stressing the operational consequences during emergency responses. An emergency-management official explained that larger counties often have multiple redundant feeds and Thomasville currently relies on a single main line that, when cut, causes a wider outage.
The Mayor said he has been in contact with AT&T and noted Pine Belt Wireless is working to install a line from Thomasville to Grove Hill; the added connection is intended to provide an alternate routing path and reduce the chance that a single cut will take down service for the area.
The council asked staff to continue working with providers on redundancy and to report back on timelines and technical solutions.
