Public Mobile Service during a Storm

[xsparky]

Hi,

Just wondering if someone can shed some light on whether or not the Public Mobile 5g service will work during a wind/rain storm?
Two nights ago in Port Coquitlam, BC the power went off during a storm, and I was able get the odd text sent, but no data reception until about 5 hours into the power outage. Then it seemed to work. Did not try phone calls during that time frame. I believe Telus/Bell tower sites have battery and generator backup.

Thanks.

[xsparky]

As I mentioned, all data was inaccessible for several hours. 3G 4g 5g. Perhaps due to a large number of people trying to access the cell site and service. I highly doubt any damage occurred as the service eventually returned or was accessible roughly 5 hours later.

[sheytoon]

Cell sites do have battery backup, and some may in fact also have generator backup.

As to why data only started working after 5 hours, it's possible that peoples phones died, or they accepted it was going to be a prolonged outage and so less phones were using the network, which means less congestion and so you were able to get data sessions that didn't show down to a crawl.

[hTideGnow]

hi @xsparky cellular towers run using the same power grid where the tower located.  Not just 5zg, but 4G and 3G networks as well

If it is a small area power outage, cell signal is  less impacted as cellular signal can travel far away.  5G likely more impacted by power outage than 4G and 4G more impacted by 3G because 3G travel the  furthest.  So, you might be easier to connect to 4G from the cellular tower away from your area or connect to 3G from another tower even further away.  That's why you can leave network mode to automatic for the phone to try connect with the different network mode or you can start trying 4G or 3G if you notice the 5G is out 

but if the power outage is affecting a wide area and you are in the middle of the outrage area, then likely you can't even pickup the far away 3G signal

[Phil_Adelphus]

@xsparky   In my area we find that in power outages Rogers doesn't work, at least for the first few hours, but Public Mobile does, so far.  I mentioned that once here and someone said they find the opposite, so I would say there's no one size fits all answer, it depends on location.  From what I recall some towers have back up power and some don't have it automatically.

[funpig1]

Power lines are independent from cell towers. Wind or storms can damage one or the other or both. In my experience, power lines are more vulnerable to outages.

One thing to note.  When power lines go down, so does your home wifi internet.  The cell towers and mobile data may still work, but with masses of people huddled in the dark in their homes trying to access the limited bandwidth at the same time, the mobile data service slows to the point that it may become unusable.

[DennyCrane]

Public Mobile is owned by Telus and uses the Telus network. If a nearby cell tower was damaged it may have impacted service. A power outage may as well, though I'd expect they'd have backup power for the cell towers and the backhaul.