One Month later, 70% of cell sites still down in Puerto Rico

One month after Hurricane Maria, 70% of cell sites in Puerto Rico remain out of service. By the FCC count, 1,901 cell sites are offline out of a total 2,723 cell sites before the disaster struck.

Thanks to a roaming pact between the five carriers, approximately 61% (slightly up from 60% last week) of the population was reported to be covered by the wireless carriers in Puerto Rico.

Coverage has also improved somewhat with Satellite Cells on Light Trucks (COLTs) now stationed in ten locations. Terrestrial Cells on Wheels (COWs)/COLTs are also now in four locations.

In the U.S. Virgin Islands, 52% of cell sites remain non-functional. Approximately 88% (up from 79% last week) of the population was reported to be covered by the wireless carriers in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

For its part, on October 14th, AT&T reported that it was processing more than 12 million calls and 6 million texts a day in Puerto Rico. AT&T has portable cell sites in Yabucoa, Rio Grande, Quebradillas, Arecibo, Manati, Yauco, Cayey, Isabela, Mayaguez Mesa, San German, Fajardo, Guayama, Vega Baja, Luquillio, and Coama Sur. AT&T is using portable satellite units at the base of clusters of cell towers in Utuado, Luquillio, and Rincon Pueblo. AT&T said it is working to repair hundreds of miles of damaged fiber and to restore power or bring generators to other sites. The company also cited a new wireless roaming agreement with a company called Vanu that currently has three satellite-based cell sites up and running in Puerto Rico and 30 more arrived October 11.