[May 18, 2013] AT&T runs disaster drill Tweet EAST HARTFORD, May 18, 2013 (New Haven Register - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Rentschler Field is normally the scene of sporting events, but this weekend, the parking lots outside the stadium are playing host to something far more meaningful: disaster preparedness drills by teams of technicians from AT&T. About 80 Network Disaster Recovery team members are spending the weekend preparing for the worst manmade and natural calamities. A small village of the latest in telecommunications networking equipment -- more than two dozen in all with an estimated value of $150 million -- is on-site for the drill. "Our focus is responding to major catastrophic events," said Kelly Morrison. "We can't replicate the entire network, but our goal is to get the most important parts of it up as quickly as possible to aid in the recovery efforts." Perhaps the best example of that rapid response came on Sept. 11, 2001. Working from an empty lot in Jersey City, N.J., near the entrance to the Holland Tunnel, a deployment similar in size to the one on display in Connecticut this weekend was able to restore telecommunications service to lower Manhattan 48 hours after the collapse of the towers, Morrison said. The drill is one of four the Texas-based telecommunications giant does annually around the nation, Morrison said. AT&T operates four warehouses at undisclosed locations across the country, with its tractor-trailer trucks filled with telecommunications networking equipment constantly at ready. "If the situation calls for it, we're prepared to drive across the country," said Morrison, who lives outside of Denver. "It's just part of the job." AT&T has had a Network Disaster Recovery team for about 20 years and has deployed more than 70 times over that period. In recognition of those efforts, AT&T is the first company to receive U.S. Department of Homeland Security private sector preparedness program certification. "We chose Connecticut for this exercise, in part, to help local and regional first responders understand NDR's role in restoring communications for an area impacted by a disaster," Mark Francis, AT&T vice president, network operations, said in a statement. Jeff Kagan, an independent telecommunications industry analyst, said Friday that all of the major providers in the industry have the capability to increase the capacity of their cellular network in the event of emergencies or major events such as the Super Bowl or a presidential inaugural. But Kagan said he was uncertain whether other carriers had a network restoration program of this size and scope that AT&T does. "Every company should have that because while they can't stop bad things from happening, they should be able to do whatever they can to get the network back up as quickly as possible," he said. Call Luther Turmelle at 203-789-5706 ___ (c)2013 the New Haven Register (New Haven, Conn.) Visit the New Haven Register (New Haven, Conn.) at www.nhregister.com Distributed by MCT Information Services [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]