CNET News.com: "As parts of the southeastern United States prepare for yet another hurricane, maintaining electrical power remains a top priority for every communications service provider.
While many things went wrong during the aftermath and relief effort of Hurricane Katrina, the technical issue that sticks out the most is the failing of the local communications network, a failure which hamstrung rescuers. The storm knocked out 3 million telephone lines, 1,000 cellular sites and 38 emergency-call centers in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, according to the Federal Communications Commission.
So what was the weak link in the chain that caused the supposedly 99.999-percent-reliable telephone network to go down, local television stations throughout the area to go off the air, and cable operators to suspend service? The answer is simple: Flood waters poured into facilities, knocking out commercial electrical power sources as well as back-up generators and batteries."
They should have used disaster satellite communications from CapRock Satellite Communications. Oops.. forgot... they did.
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