Verizon voice and text stops when local electric power fails

Bruce571

All Verizon service goes out when power goes out. Last week after winter icing power went off for three hours. 45 minutes after power went out so did Verizon. This is consistent ever since Verizon upgraded service on the towers. For us it has been a downgrade. Being left with no means of communication is not an option. Landline also goes out because of upgrade to fiber optics which do not work without electricity.

SynthpopAddict

Cell phone towers use electricity to run and not all towers have a backup power supply. In your case, it sounds like the tower your phone was connected to did have a backup supply in place, but even so, the battery or diesel backup generator will only run for so long before it is exhausted. If a situation is prolonged such as the infamous February 2021 Texas Power Grid Collapse or the fire damage in Lahaina, Hawaii, Verizon will bring out mobile "cells on wheels" (COWs) to provide cellular service, but this doesn't happen for power outages lasting a few hours. (I just returned from a cruise there recently and noticed a Verizon Response team in the area with a COW along the highway on the outskirts of Lahaina. Also lived through Snow Week Disaster in TX in 2021 and my cell phone was the only thing working.)