McCreary Outages cause issues with phones and patience
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McCreary Outages cause issues with phones and patience
By Shane Gilreath
SCN Contributing Editor
[email protected]
For more than a week, cellular customers across the Kentucky border, particularly in neighboring McCreary County, have faced frustrating service interruptions tied to networks that rely on AT&T cell phone towers. The outages have left many residents unable to make calls, send text messages, or reliably access mobile data, creating significant challenges for both personal and business communications.
See OUTAGES, Page 10A
What has perhaps frustrated customers even more is the response – or lack of a response – they have received from the corporation, leaving social media abuzz with complaints about the popular communications company. According to numerous reports, AT&T initially denied that any outage existed, offering a variety of explanations that led many customers to believe the problem was isolated to their devices, SIM cards, or account settings. As a result, much of public frustration was directed at local franchise holders and retailers who had little information to provide with no solution beyond contact with AT&T.
SCN can confirm that, despite on-going outages, as late as last week, the AT&T website still did not list McCreary County as experiencing service disruptions despite a slew of complaints from customers throughout the area.
Local retailers, including Hometown Cellular in Whitley City, have since informed their customers that technicians have identified the problem and that replacement parts are being shipped to repair affected towers. Hometown Cellular emphasized that the outages are not related to customers’ SIM cards or individual devices, despite what many had reportedly been told by AT&T Customer Service, and encouraged users to utilize Wi-Fi calling when possible until repairs are completed.
While AT&T has acknowledged the issue to local franchise holders, no official timetable for restoration has been provided. Similar incidents involving prolonged outages and communication concerns have been reported in other parts of the country in recent months, leaving many customers questioning both the reliability of service and the transparency of a company with which they do business.
