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Hurricane Irma: Comcast makes sure Florida has WiFi through storm

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HURRICANE IRMA PREPS: Sandbag distribution information

LATEST ON HURRICANE IRMA

Comcast has announced that it's making sure the Florida has WiFi capability throughout Hurricane Irma.

The company said Wednesday that more than 137,000 free Xfinity WiFi hotspots throughout Florida to anyone who needs them, whether residents are customers or not.

In order to use the service select the "xfinitywifi" network name in the list of available hotspots and then launch a browser.

Comcast regular Xfinity internet customers will be able to sign in with their usernames and passwords, automatically connecting to Xfinity WiFi hotspots.

Non-Xfinity internet customers need to visit the "Not an Xfinity Internet Customer" section on the sign-in page and will be able to renew their free sessions every 2 hours until September 15, according to Comcast.

“We know it’s critically important for everyone to have a means of communication at their disposal before, during and after a storm with the potential impact of Hurricane Irma,” said Amy Smith, senior vice president for Comcast’s Florida Region. “By activating our WiFi hotspot network across the state now before the storm, we increase the chance that more people can stay connected. It’s something we’re proud to do for our communities and our state at a time when we all need to support each other.”

Comcast Preparations and Customer Tips for Hurricane Irma

Comcast is also making extensive preparations at its facilities throughout Florida, including staging emergency generators and fuel trucks as well as bringing in additional technical and network restoration teams that are ready to be deployed as the storm’s path becomes clearer.

Comcast’s goal is to work to restore any services impacted for customers as quickly as possible and as soon as it is safe for its employees to do so.  Customers should remember that emergency management procedures in Florida dictate that power must be restored first and Comcast must receive clearance that it is safe for its crews to begin any restoration work.

If Comcast services are down in an area because of a power outage, local power must be restored before video, phone and internet services can begin working again.

Customer tips:

·The most effective way to get outage updates and information about Comcast services is to visit Xfinity.com/MyAccount or to access the Xfinity My Account app from any secure, internet-enabled mobile device.

·If customers have electrical power but Xfinity service has not yet come back on, Comcast recommends that customers restart or reset devices, including wireless gateways, modems, routers and cable boxes.

·Customers should unplug their equipment or use a surge protector to plug in TVs, modems and cable boxes so that when power is restored, those devices aren’t damaged by power surges.

·Customers can chat online with an agent or visit customer.xfinity.com/help-and-support. Using social media, customers can connect with Comcast on Twitter at @ComcastCares

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