WASHINGTON, D.C. – May 22, 2018 – Lives are at stake when natural disasters and other catastrophic events cause communications infrastructure disruptions. ULTATEL’s cloud-based telecommunications initiatives can help prevent future breakdowns.
The widespread impact of public communications networks failing due to natural disasters can mean the difference between life and death for many.1 Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Jose and Maria brought about a rampant breakdown of communications infrastructures in Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico, Mexico and the Caribbean in 2017, making it nearly impossible for emergency responders to reach anyone who might have been trapped, injured or in desperate need of medical attention.1 In such situations, rescue efforts become extremely complicated when communication through standard channels is offline.1 Amr Ibrahim, CEO of ULTATEL, says that while traditional communication methods can be wiped out indefinitely during natural disasters, cloud-based telecommunications solutions are designed around disaster recovery capability—allowing full communications continuity during catastrophic events such as power outages or last mile connectivity disruption.
Immediately following a catastrophic event, there is enormous demand for urgent medical care and emergency assistance.2Hurricane Maria tore through Puerto Rico and demolished its entire infrastructure. The local government shut down, decision-making came to a halt, and looting, along with an overall lack of safety in the streets, compounded its problems. After the hurricane passed, 80% of National Guard members could not be accounted for, and many first responders were unreachable.3 This breakdown of communications infrastructure is a frequent outcome of catastrophic events, and can have deadly consequences.1
Per Ibrahim, dependable, instantaneous voice communication is a fundamental requirement for first responders to get recovery efforts underway.
“During the time immediately following any natural disaster, it’s critical that first responders and government officials work in unison to initiate major relief efforts. It’s challenging enough for these groups to sync up even under the best of circumstances, but when network connections are limited or even unavailable, miscommunications and delays in action are inevitable,” said Ibrahim.
Reportedly, voice-based communications systems provide the most reliable and secure way to connect first responders from multiple organizations using various data sources.2 And the cloud communication market is booming; estimated to reach over $5 billion by 2022, this platform integrates emerging technologies into a single application, thereby reducing the need to integrate various services provided by multiple vendors.4
As a leading provider of cloud-based technology, ULTATEL can seamlessly connect first responders and other critical players in disaster recovery with 99.999% reliability. The company’s disaster-proof telecom infrastructure seamlessly connects users from all locations globally, dramatically improving responsiveness and allowing all parties to stay connected anywhere at any time.
Operating through the most technologically advanced data center infrastructure in the industry, ULTATEL is connected through numerous highly available Internet and connectivity options and has several safeguards in place—providing an unmatched level of reliability. Even in the aftermath of a catastrophic event, ULTATEL’s cloud-based unified communications platform can prevent infrastructure breakdowns, providing a reliable way for responders to connect and save more lives.
About ULTATEL
ULTATEL is a leading provider of cloud-based phone system solutions. Through its unified communications platform, companies can have all of their voice, video, fax, SMS and audio conferencing services on one affordable system. ULTATEL Business Clarity, with more than 40 enterprise grade features, helps companies operate from a single location or multiple locations seamlessly using desktop phones, soft phones or mobile apps. ULTATEL’s Contact Center solution satisfies the need for call center features such as advanced interactive voice response (IVR), call queuing, skilled/time-based routing and advanced call analytics. ULTATEL’s vision is to completely change how companies conduct business by delivering the most comprehensive suite of unified cloud-based telephony services that dramatically improve responsiveness, increase productivity, enhance globalization efficiencies, and reduce operating costs so that businesses can most effectively compete both today and in the future. Visit https://www.ULTATEL.com/.Sources
- Richards, Christina. “When Communications Infrastructure Fails During a Disaster.” Disaster Recovery Journal, 12 Nov. 2015.
drj.com/articles/online-exclusive/when-communications-infrastructure-fails-during-a-disaster.html - Verdonk, Marcel. “Role of Communications in Times of Disasters.” Telecom Asia, 27 Apr. 2018.
telecomasia.net/content/role-communications-times-disasters - Knell, Noelle. “NASCIO Midyear: 5 Disaster Recovery Lessons for CIOs.” Government Technology: State & Local Government News Articles, 24 Apr. 2018.
govtech.com/em/disaster/NASCIO-emergency-management.html - “Cloud Communication Platform Market Estimated to Reach USD 5775 Million from Telecom Industry during the Forecast Period till 2022.” Digital Innovations in Facial Recognition: Interview (Includes Interview), www.digitaljournal.com/pr/3769737.
