Pembroke, Bermuda and Irvine California, 6 December 2007
Intelsat, Ltd., the world's leading provider of commercial satellite
services, and On Call Communications today announced that they have
joined forces, and in coordination with AT&T, have donated
desperately needed emergency communications for command operations and
victim relief centers in fire-affected southern California communities.
Within hours after Governor Schwarzenegger issued a disaster
declaration the three companies swung into action, donating satellite
terminals, satellite bandwidth, engineering personnel and logistical
support. AT&T took the lead in contacting State and local
governments to apprise them of the first response capabilities that
were available to them.
"The quick response of On Call
Communications and the ability to provide continuous 24-hour support
was crucial in maintaining optimal communications for our recent
Santiago Fire." reported Scott Johnson, IT Analyst for Orange County
Fire Authority who relied on the QuickSPOT terminals and Intelsat
On-Demand bandwidth for fire mapping and logistical coordination.
On Call Communications and Intelsat
prepared and installed all of the automated satellite based systems and
optimized each of the terminals for the specific applications used by
the authorities. On Call and Intelsat also donated all of the satellite
bandwidth used for the operations.
The QuickSPOT automated, satellite
terminals deployed were able to establish communications within minutes
of arrival. John Pingel, Group IT Manager for the County of San Diego
said, "The onboard voice and data links were up within minutes after
the wheels stopped rolling on the mobile QuickSPOT satellite units.
From there, our technicians were quickly able to patch in connections
to the local area network and phone systems to distribute
communications throughout the facilities." The systems provided voice
(VoIP), Internet access, WI-FI, file transfers and video services in
the San Diego suburbs of Fall Brook, El Cajon and Jamul where they
supported Local Assistance Centers. A high school and a juvenile
detention facility in the San Diego were also serviced.
"We were proud to assist our state and
local governments; it's the least we could do for those who give so
unselfishly of themselves to keep our families and property safe. We
have been doing this for a good many years all over the globe, but it
takes on a whole new meaning when it's in your own back yard" said Jim
Gilbert, CEO of On Call Communications.
Intelsat CEO David McGlade commented,
"The unfortunate events in California served as yet another example of
the ability of satellite communications to rapidly establish critical
communications links when ground infrastructure has been destroyed by
natural or man-made disasters, or is inaccessible. We are proud to
support the emergency teams in California during this time of urgent
need, and stand ready to demonstrate for emergency response teams
across the nation the value of including satellite-based communications
in emergency preparedness plans."
About On Call Communications
On Call Communications specializes in emergency response satellite
communications. Most notably On Call designed, built and provides
service for FEMA's fleet of Mobile Disaster Recovery Centers, regional
offices and Mobile Emergency Responses vehicles.
About Intelsat
Intelsat is the leading provider of fixed satellite services (FSS)
worldwide and is the leading provider of these services to each of the
media, network services and government customer sectors, enabling
people and businesses everywhere constant access to information and
entertainment. Intelsat offers customers a greater business potential
by providing them access to unrivaled resources with ease of business
and peace of mind. An extensive customer base, including some of the
world's leading media and communications companies, multinational
corporations, Internet service providers and government/military
organizations, utilizes our services. Real-time, constant communication
with people anywhere in the world is closer, by far.
Contacts
Erin Ludden
On Call Communications
erin@occsat.com
+1 949-707-4729 x 25
Nick Mitsis
Intelsat, Ltd.
nick.mitsis@intelsat.com
+1 202 944 7044
Intelsat Safe Harbor Statement. Some of the statements in this news
release constitute "forward-looking statements" that do not directly or
exclusively relate to historical facts. The forward-looking statements
made in this release reflect Intelsat's intentions, plans,
expectations, assumptions and beliefs about future events and are
subject to risks, including known and unknown risks. Detailed
information about some of the known risks is included in Intelsat's
annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2006 and
other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Because
actual results could differ materially from Intelsat's intentions,
plans, expectations, assumptions and beliefs about the future, you are
urged to view all forward-looking statements contained in this news
release with caution. Intelsat does not undertake any obligation to
update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of
new information, future events or otherwise.
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