Editor’s note: We will continue to update this story as more information becomes available.
(Update: 1:25 p.m. – Dec. 27, 2020) – More than 75% of mobility sites affected by the Christmas Day explosion in downtown Nashville have been restored, AT&T announced in a statement posted to its website early Sunday afternoon.
“We continue to connect generator power to equipment and refuel generators as needed,” the update stated. “We expect to activate power to at least four additional floors of the building during the day today and are working on the cooling equipment to manage the temperatures in the facility. Teams are assessing equipment on the building’s lower floors for any damage caused by the flooding of the building.”
(10:18 a.m. – Dec. 27, 2020) – AT&T continued Sunday morning in its efforts to restore internet and cellular service to Hopkinsville area residents. The disruption, which is linked to a Christmas Day explosion in downtown Nashville, is part of a larger outage affecting customers across Kentucky and Tennessee. It has also knocked out 911 service in Christian County and other regions.
“Significant progress was made in our restoration efforts overnight,” an update posted to the telecommunications company’s website at 8:20 a.m. Sunday stated. “Power was restored to four floors of the building. So far, more than 65% of mobility sites affected by the explosion on Friday have been restored. Yesterday, more than three feet of water was pumped out of the building’s basement, but access to the lower floors of the building are still limited.”
Over the last two days, the company has faced serious logistical challenges associated with working in a disaster area, including a fire that reignited Friday night, prompting delays.
According to Sunday’s statement, AT&T has deployed 17 portable cell towers to aid communication in the region. Twenty-four additional sites were expected to be live by the end of the day, according to the company. Hoptown Chronicle has requested additional information about which areas those sites would service.
The company also noted that, in its assessment of its downtown Nashville facility, the building’s commercial power connections were damaged and offline.
“We are working with the local power utility on repairs. In addition, there is other significant damage to the building from the blast, including to the elevators, some beams/columns, and the building’s façade,” the update stated.
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Julia Hunter is the engagement editor for Hoptown Chronicle. Reach her at julia@hoptownchronicle.org.
