News and Events

We get it. Unexpected service outages are frustrating. Whether at work or home, whether it’s morning, noon or night, there is no good time to lose internet, TV or phone services. 

Many things can cause an outage, and most are the result of events outside our control, such as severe weather, power outages or accidents from construction or human error. Good thing Midco is one step ahead when a disaster strikes. 

The process starts with the Midco Network Operations Center (NOC).  

Ready for anything.

Think of the NOC like a 911 center – all communication coming in and out during an outage goes through them. 

The NOC is notified of an outage through multiple channels – alerts from our systems, dashboards and emails. Within seconds, team members are mobilized to get customers back online. Customers in that service area are switched over to a backup fiber connection to minimal interruption.

Every effort is taken by the NOC to prepare ahead of time for events like severe weather.

“One thing we do is put those areas where the storm may hit in what is called disaster mode,” said Steve Beach, Midco NOC Manager. “The NOC is already monitoring the entire network, so if an outage occurs, we can immediately alert Midco team members and customers and begin network repairs.”

Because the NOC can operate 100% remotely, the team is able to respond safely and quickly no matter the hour. And thanks to built-in network safety nets, an outage in one or a few Midco service areas should not affect customers elsewhere.

Learn how the Midco NOC watches and optimizes our network 24/7

All hands on deck.

“We have a really good process and team in place to deal with an outage or emergency as quickly as possible,” explained Paige Pearson Meyer, Vice President of Corporate Communications.

The Crisis Response Team includes team members from different departments across the company who start communication and response efforts immediately. Real-time updates are sent to departments internally, as well as to customers.

“We communicate through a bunch of different ways: home and work phone, text and email. Our system can target team members geographically, so if Midco employees live in a specific area, we let them know the situation, where we are at as a team and what they need to do individually to respond,” said Pearson Meyer.

Keeping customers in the know.

Simultaneous to Midco teams assembling to resolve the outage, the Midco customer care team is fielding incoming calls and chats.

“The first thing customers always ask is if they are a part of an outage and, if they are, when services are going to come back on,” explained Bob Bartelt, Director of Customer Experience Operations. “People are more forgiving when the outage is related to severe weather, but it is always frustrating to lose services. We empathize with them and do our best to keep customers informed throughout the process.”

Midco provides regular updates on My Account and our outages web page. Midco customers who have opted-in to service-related text messages or emails in My Account will also be alerted if they are part of an outage.

“When customers are working from home or the office and services stop working, it can be very impactful. In these instances, we take extra effort to report back or provide proof for their employer that they are in a Midco-related outage,” said Bartelt. “Don’t hesitate to contact our team. Our support folks are here for you 24/7/365!”

The Midco team is ready to jump into action when an issue occurs.

Boots on the ground.

After planning and communicating, the last step is getting the right people in place to fix the problem. All the moving parts and teams come together quickly to reconnect homes, businesses and communities to services.

But Midco also needs to consider variables, such as weather and safety. Midco’s field operations disaster recovery plan identifies each person’s exact role. Guidelines outline the conditions when it is unsafe for crews to work on an outage or climb poles.

Plus, we have a buddy system. GPS monitoring and hourly check-ins by the NOC ensure we always have eyes and ears on our crews and trucks.

Severe weather and high winds can interrupt your connection.

“Early in a storm situation, field operations is assessing the damage. This includes traveling to the site, gathering information, taking photos and videos, and using that data to determine the severity and length of repair,” explained Steve Mattern, Vice President of Field Operations.

While Midco vehicles are equipped for the season’s weather conditions, there are times when the infrastructure or needs exceed what can be transported by a single team or vehicle.

“Having good partnerships with local contractors across our footprint allows us to respond very, very quickly,” said Mattern. “If it is 4 am, and we need emergency locates or a backhoe, we have access to everything nearby – even in remote locations.”

Most importantly, our experts are specially trained to handle repairs, from fiber cuts to downed lines, in all kinds of conditions, including natural disasters and extreme cold or heat.

“When times are at their worst, we're at our best,” said Mattern. “We never run short of volunteers across the company. Everyone bands together to bring customers back online.”