Utilities: Phones

Know your different telephone options. Nothing will be more important to you than reaching loved ones and connecting after a disaster.

• Payphones will often be back up before local lines. Keep coins available and note where nearby payphones are located
• POTS – Plain Old Telephone Service does not need your electricity to work. Keep a POTS phone where you can find it when you need it. These low-tech old friends draw power from the phone lines, and can still work during a power failure.
• Cell phones may work when landlines are down, but they sometimes fail even without a disaster. Program vital numbers in your cell phone(s), and keep a hard copy in case your battery runs out.
• Know the emergency backup plans for your digital phone systems.

Remember: Many fax machines, dial-up internet, and DSL providers operate with a regular land phoneline and will not work if that line goes down.