ATIS’ Network Reliability Steering Committee Releases Hurricane Checklist for Telecommunications Industry

October 30, 2006, Washington – The ATIS Network Reliability Steering Committee (NRSC) has published the NRSC Hurricane Checklist to assist the telecommunications industry storm preparedness efforts.

The document covers a broad spectrum of items, from monitoring of the storm path five days in advance, to physical planning for vehicles, equipment, power and fuel supplies. The NRSC Hurricane Checklist is available for download at http://www.atis.org/nrsc/docs.asp.

“In the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma in 2005, the industry has come together to compile a checklist that will help all carriers, large and small, gauge their readiness for predictable natural disasters, support the safety of their crews, and recover services to their customers,” said Susan M. Miller, president and CEO of ATIS. “The unprecedented impact of last year’s natural disasters on the telecommunications infrastructure provided a wealth of lessons that NRSC has captured as a learning tool that service providers across the country can apply, not just those in hurricane-prone areas.”

ATIS has filed the NRSC Hurricane Checklist as part of the Federal Communications Commission’s open docket regarding the recommendations of the independent panel reviewing the impact of hurricane Katrina on communications networks ( EB Docket No. 06-119). The development of voluntary industry checklists was one of the issues ATIS supported earlier this year, advocating the industry-led development of such lists.

The NRSC is a consensus-based industry committee that analyzes the communications industry's reporting of network outages, makes recommendations aimed at improving network reliability, and distributes the results of its findings to industry. Current company participants in the NRSC include: Alcatel, AT&T, BellSouth, Cox Communications, EMBARQ, Juniper Networks, Lucent Technologies, National Communications System (NCS), Nortel Networks, NTT MCL, Qwest, Sprint, Telcordia Technologies and Verizon.

About ATIS

ATIS is a technical planning and standards development organization that is committed to rapidly developing and promoting technical and operations standards for the communications and related information technologies industry worldwide using a pragmatic, flexible and open approach. Participants from more than 350 communications companies are active in ATIS’ 23 industry committees and Incubator Solutions Program. www.atis.org

-30-