How to Stay Connected with Emergency Internet

Table of Contents

• Emergency internet service options
• Emergency satellite internet
• Portable internet devices
• Fixed wireless internet
• Local government internet
• Stay connected with EarthLink

Natural disasters are uncontrollable and can cause serious hardship for communities that experience them. One of the scariest parts of these disasters is losing contact with family and local groups. This can happen when you are in a disaster zone with internet and power outages.

Having a strong disaster communication plan is important for everyone to have. A disaster communication plan is especially important if you live in places that often experience disasters. This includes areas like the Gulf of Mexico and Tornado Alley in the United States.

One of the most important parts of your disaster communication plan is staying connected to the internet. For this, you’ll need emergency broadband internet.

Emergency internet service options

There are a variety of emergency WiFi services available for consumers. It’s important to keep in mind that if you don’t have power, many if not all of these devices won’t be useful. Having a generator available and running it will be crucial to keeping your emergency internet running.

Emergency satellite internet

If you still have power after a disaster, emergency satellite internet is one of your best emergency internet options. This is because the technology relies on a connection to satellites in space. This makes it hard for a disaster to take out the network.

Keep in mind, during an extreme weather event, satellite internet will most likely not be reliable. This is because satellite internet is impacted by weather. In the aftermath of the disaster, satellite internet should still work for you so long as you have power.

You should also keep in mind that satellite internet has high latency. This means some things like streaming and video chatting may be difficult.

Portable internet devices

There are a variety of mobile internet options available to customers. Many of these emergency portable internet devices run on 4G LTE/5G technology. This means these devices use the same technology as your cell phone. If your area still has cell service in the event of a disaster, these services will still function.

One key strength of these wireless internet devices is they don’t require professional installation. These devices are most often shipped to a location and are plug and play allowing for quick access. However, they are also often limited in bandwidth and data is metered. This means if you go over your data limit, you may experience a slowdown in performance called throttling.

Fixed wireless internet

Fixed wireless is a reliable dedicated high-speed internet solution. So long as power is up, a fixed wireless solution may be one of the best emergency WiFi solutions. Fixed wireless uses microwaves to send a point-to-point internet connection to a customer location.

Some key strengths of fixed wireless emergency internet service include dedicated speeds, no data caps, and limited weather impact. However, if you’re already in a disaster and don’t have fixed wireless, you won’t be able to connect via this method. Fixed wireless requires professionals to install. So, if you want fixed wireless, it’s best to have it in place and prepare.

Local government internet

Disaster relief starts at the local government level. If you’re a local government official, it’s important to set up ways to keep communication active. Facilitating communication with the state and federal governments, and your local community is especially important.

One way to do this is to create community networks. These community networks would connect government offices and aid stations to the internet. Officials should think about pairing power generators with backup internet services.

Fixed wireless can be a reliable high-speed backup for important places like government offices and schools. This keeps vital touchstones in the community in contact with leaders. It also gives people a way to talk to loved ones and the outside world.

Stay connected with EarthLink

If you want a provider who can keep you connected with reliable internet speeds, consider EarthLink. We give you a variety of services to meet your needs and give you a connection you can rely on. Call 866-618-0264 to get started with EarthLink today!