Verizon Restores Phone Service in Tornado-Damaged Areas throughout Alabama

DOTHAN, Ala. - Verizon worked around the clock this week to restore phone service to communities throughout Alabama that were in the path of Saturday's tornadoes.

Some 1,200 Verizon customers lost communications due to the powerful storms. By today, the company had restored service to most of the affected customers.

"These storms destroyed telephone poles and miles of fiber-optic and copper cable," said Del Thompson, Verizon's Alabama area operations manager. "We assessed the damage early Sunday morning and have worked continuously since then to restore full service. We're delighted to have dialtone back to most of those affected.

In Haleyville, Fayette, Trussville, Pell City and Daleville - which were hit hardest by the storms - Verizon brought in employees from other parts of the state to join local technicians,
engineers and construction crews in repairing service.

Thompson noted that some isolated cases of tornado-related outages may still remain today, but the majority of Verizon's Alabama network is now operating normally.

Customers affected by the storms who are still experiencing trouble should call 1-800-483-1000 for repairs. Business customers wishing to relocate existing service to a new location should call 1-800-483-5000. Residential customers, wishing to relocate service, should call 1-800-483-4000.

Verizon Communications

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) is one of the world's leading providers of communications services. Verizon companies are the largest providers of wireline and wireless communications in the United States, with 128.5 million access line equivalents and 28.7 million wireless customers. Verizon is also the largest directory publisher in the world. A Fortune 10 company with 256,000 employees and approximately $65 billion in annual revenues, Verizon's global presence extends to more than 40 countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Pacific. For more information on Verizon, visit www.verizon.com.