Power outages continue across the Greater Houston area, with 1.3 million people without power, according to CenterPoint Energy's outage tracker, and internet companies are continuing to update efforts to provide access to services.
What you need to know
A T-Mobile July 10 update said the internet company’s community support team will be at several T-Mobile locations and cooling centers providing power, Wi-Fi, device charging and charging supplies for anyone who needs them.
Cooling centers where T-Mobile representatives will be assisting people from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. include:
- T-Mobile store: 10314 Hwy. 59, Ste. D, Wharton
- T-Mobile store: The Commons at Deerbrook, 9550 FM 1960 Bypass Road W., Humble (Note: Teams will be on-site beginning at 11 a.m.)
- Tellepsen Family Downtown YMCA (cooling center): 808 Pease St., Houston
- Weekley Family YMCA (cooling center): 7101 Stella Link Blvd., Houston
- Angelina
- Austin
- Brazoria
- Chambers
- Colorado
- Fort Bend
- Galveston
- Grimes
- Hardin
- Harris
- Houston
- Jackson
- Jasper
- Jefferson
- Liberty
- Madison
- Matagorda
- Montgomery
- Nacogdoches
- Newton
- Orange
- Polk
- Sabine
- San Augustine
- San Jacinto
- Shelby
- Trinity
- Tyler
- Walker
- Waller
- Wharton
As of July 9, an AT&T update states the company had responded to 18 FirstNet emergency support requests made by public safety officials, including from federal, state and local agencies.
Another July 9 update states, along with AT&T retail stores reopening and serving customers, AT&T and the nonprofit Information Technology Disaster Resource Center have set up a mobile connectivity center to serve as a resource for those who have lost power and need internet access.
At the mobile connectivity center located at the Deputy Almendarez Center at 10918 Bentley St., Houston, anyone can charge their devices or use one of its 16 computers on July 10 from 8 a.m.-8 p.m.
Meanwhile, a July 9 update from Comcast states the critical network facilities in the area were not damaged by Hurricane Beryl and are operational; however, there are 700 Comcast technicians fixing any damaged lines and equipment.
The Comcast update also states CenterPoint officials announced power will be restored to about 1 million people by July 10, and once power is restored, in most cases, internet access will also be restored.
Posted: 1:44 p.m. July 9
Hurricane Beryl left many Houston-area residents with spotty internet and cellphone service due to tropical storm-force winds, rain, widespread flooding and tornadoes, a T-Mobile news release from July 9 states.
As of July 8, CenterPoint Energy's outage tracker reported there were over 2.2 million customers without power. As of 1:35 p.m. July 9, there were over 1.6 million customers without power.
In case you missed it
Ahead of the storm, internet companies, such as T-mobile, AT&T and Comcast, warned customers about potential service interruptions in the event of power outages.
“Simply put, the internet needs power to work,” a Comcast alert states.
A July 5 T-Mobile news release states the provider’s emergency management teams were working to strengthen the network in areas likely to be impacted by Beryl as an extension of its year-round resiliency efforts.
Comcast and AT&T also announced preparation plans to provide service access for customers ahead of Hurricane Beryl.
The impact
According to a July 8 Comcast update, there are 420,000 Xfinity and Comcast business customers whose service has been temporarily interrupted by Beryl’s impact on southeast Texas.
The latest updates provided by AT&T said major network facilities remain online, with some running on backup power; however, customers in affected areas could be experiencing service interruptions due to storm damage and commercial power outages.
The action taken
A Comcast update from July 8 said the provider opened up all operational Xfinity Wi-Fi hotspots in the Houston area, free of charge, to all residents. To access free Wi-Fi hotspots, Houston residents can click here and follow the instructions provided to connect to the internet.
Meanwhile, T-Mobile emergency restoration teams staged a group of heavy-duty network and disaster relief vehicles as well as temporary connectivity solutions and portable generators in multiple locations where teams are able to safely assess network sites, a T-Mobile release states.
In another effort to aid residents without service, an AT&T release said the company is waiving overage charges to provide unlimited talk, text and data for AT&T Postpaid and Prepaid customers with billing addresses in ZIP codes across affected areas from July 8-17.
