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Sprint Update on Phone Restoration in Florida OVERLAND PARK, Kan., Aug. 19 /PRNewswire/ --Service Improving Sprint estimates 29,000 customers are without phone service in Florida Sprint has received approximately 4,000 trouble reports from customers statewide. Customers can call either of the following phone numbers to report outages: 1-800-788-3600 to report service problems 1-888-723-8010 if they need service for temporary living arrangements Sprint's wireless network in areas impacted by the hurricane is 98% operational. A few sites remain out of service due to power or issues with the landline telephone network. A mobile Cell on Wheels has been installed in Punta Gorda to supplement a tower that sustained damage from the storm. "Sprint appreciates our customers' understanding as we work to restore service to those areas still affected," said Charles Rehwinkel, vice president - External Affairs, Sprint. "We had over twenty-two Sprint trucks destroyed as a result of the storm, so although you may not see our red diamond-branded trucks, be assured that our dedicated technicians are working around-the-clock to restore service." Earlier this week Sprint also brought in an additional 250 workers to assist local efforts in restoring service to the hardest hit areas. "We have had Sprint employees from other states volunteer their vacation time to travel to Florida to help with restoration efforts," said Rehwinkel. "To them it doesn't matter in which state Sprint needs support; a Sprint customer in any given state is still a Sprint customer." Connecting Customers Sprint has installed a mobile pay phone station in Punta Gorda and is offering free local calls. The mobile unit is located at the corner of Nesbitt and Olympia Avenue, in the parking lot of the former U-Save grocery store. Additionally, all fixed Sprint pay phones throughout Charlotte, Highlands, Hardee, Polk, DeSoto, Okeechobee and Sarasota are offering free local calling and Sprint technicians are installing more pay phone stations throughout the area. Evacuees staying at the TECO Arena shelter in Estero can also make free local calls from Sprint pay phones. Customers may dial 888-800-CALL to assist with long-distance calls. Sprint Stores All Sprint retail stores in Florida are open for sales and customer service on equipment. Customers without phone service are invited to visit one of the Sprint retail stores located at 2710 DelPrado in Cape Coral, 10600 Tamiami Trail North or 2174 Tamiami Trail in Naples, and 10960 South Cleveland Avenue in Ft. Myers. Caution to Customers Cleaning Up Sprint asks customers who are cleaning up their homes and neighborhoods to avoid piling refuse and debris for garbage pickup near telephone terminals located curbside on neighborhood streets. This will help avoid front-end loaders and other large machinery from potentially damaging Sprint equipment during pick-up service. Red Cross Relief Efforts In support of Hurricane Charley relief efforts, Sprint has donated $100,000 to the American Red Cross and additionally will match contributions made by employees up to $150,000. Under an existing program, the National American Red Cross has 500 activated wireless Sprint PCS Phones, plus a supply of pre-paid calling cards to provide to Red Cross staging areas for emergency personnel, storm victims or other key groups to maintain essential communications. Relief for Sprint Employees Impacted by Storm Sprint has operations and employees throughout Florida, and we are working to identify employees who suffered personal losses from the hurricane. Provisions Sprint is offering these employees include: -- Short-term interest free disaster loans: Up to $1,000 for employees who have experienced significant damage or loss to their primary residence, and $2,000 for those who suffered total losses. Repayment of these loans will not start for several weeks to allow time for employees to get their lives back in order, and will be handled through payroll deduction. We will also offer an extended payback period. -- Company paid time off: Two extra days of paid time off to deal with immediate post-event needs. Employees who need more time can work with their local management, who has the flexibility to approve additional paid time off as needed and appropriate. -- Employee support: Sprint will facilitate the process for employees wishing to voluntarily donate additional time off (from their own paid time off pool) or monetary contributions to their peers in need. Sprint employees have a history of helping others. Our employees in Florida are working long hours to restore service to our customers, even though many of them are also dealing with their own personal property damage. We've seen many examples of employees not directly affected by the storm reaching out to help others, including several who have taken vacation time to assist the recovery efforts in Florida. About Sprint Sprint is a global integrated communications provider serving more than 26 million customers in over 100 countries. With more than 61,000 employees worldwide and over $26 billion in annual revenues in 2003, Sprint is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying state-of-the-art network technologies, including the United States' first nationwide all-digital, fiber-optic network and an award-winning Tier 1 Internet backbone. Sprint provides local communications services in 39 states and the District of Columbia and operates the largest 100-percent digital, nationwide PCS wireless network in the United States. For more information, visit http://www.sprint.com/ . Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20001013/SPRINTLOGOAP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/PRN Photo Desk, +1-888-776-6555 or +1-212-782-2840 Sprint CONTACT: Jeff Mechlin, +1-863-873-6168 (Charlotte County),[email protected] , Steve Personette, +1-239-281-6383 (Lee, CollierCounties), [email protected] , Dan Peterson, +1-407-758-2491(Orlando area), [email protected] , or Nanci Schwartz,+1-305-788-8256, [email protected] , all of Sprint Web site: http://www.sprint.com/ |