Ericsson's Response to the Hurricane Katrina Disaster Relief Effort

Ericsson remains committed to the relief efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina by helping restore advanced, reliable wireless communications throughout the affected area. In addition, through the Ericsson Response program, we pledge to provide the necessary support for the anticipated Hurricane Rita, which is expected to impact other the Texas Gulf Coast region.

"Ericsson has long had a global commitment, through our Ericsson Response program, to respond quickly to human suffering caused by disaster," said Angel Ruiz, head of Ericsson's North American operations. "Communication is a fundamental human need, and it is essential that we work with the authorities and our operators' customers to help provide that service in this time of crisis."

In preparation for the volatile Hurricane Rita, Ericsson stands ready to provide three mobile communications systems, which arrived at the U.S. Air Force base in Little Rock, Arkansas earlier this month our global headquarters in Sweden. These systems can be used immediately to accelerate assistance and to help restore telecommunications services as needed once the volatile hurricane strikes.

For the rescue and recovery efforts along the Gulf coast in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Ericsson has worked along side U.S. Military Joint Task Force Katrina in the New Orleans area to provide microwave equipment, wireless systems, handsets and telecommunications services to support the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy,  and New Orleans’ Louis Armstrong International Airport.

Just recently, Ericsson has deployed three QuicLINK end-to-end portable cellular systems which include wireless phones with pre-programmed short calling numbers as well as 10-digit dialing. These systems are now in the hands of Joint Task Force Katrina.