AT&T has donated $25,000 to the Navajo Nation COVID-19 Relief Fund to help with medical and community needs in the areas impacted by the pandemic. Additionally, at the request of the Navajo Nation as a FirstNet® subscriber, the FirstNet team at AT&T deployed additional network resources to help provide critical FirstNet connectivity to first responders on the frontlines on the Navajo Nation.
The Navajo Nation, the largest tribal reservation in the United States spanning the corners of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, has been hit very hard by the coronavirus. Currently, the Navajo Nation has the highest COVID-19 infection rate per capita in the United States.
“AT&T has developed a strong partnership with the Navajo Nation over the years by working together to implement FirstNet to help our Nation’s first responders, and now with their generous donation that will benefit our frontline warriors and our Navajo people,” said Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez. “We are truly thankful for AT&T for their generous contribution.”
“AT&T is committed to stepping up to provide our support to the Navajo Nation.”
Toni M. Broberg – President, AT&T Arizona and AT&T New Mexico
“While the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted all of us, it has had an especially devastating effect on the Navajo Nation,” said Toni M. Broberg, president of AT&T Arizona and New Mexico. “This crisis has led to increased demand for medical and community needs, and AT&T is committed to stepping up to provide our support to the Navajo Nation.”
At the request of the Navajo Nation as a FirstNet subscriber, the FirstNet team deployed 2 Satellite Cell on Light Trucks (SatCOLTs) to support the COVID-19 response operations on the Navajo Nation. These network assets work as mobile cell sites linking to FirstNet via satellite without relying on commercial power. The mobile sites provide first responders with similar connectivity as a cell tower. The dedicated FirstNet deployable assets are available 24/7 at the request of and at no additional charge to public safety agencies on FirstNet.
“Navajo Nation has been working with FirstNet to make sure the needs of tribal first responders and health command workers serving Navajo Nation are met,” said Chris Becenti, Executive Director, Navajo Nation Telecommunications Regulatory Commission Office. “We look forward to the future deployment of FirstNet on the Navajo Nation,” referencing the buildout of Band 14 spectrum on Navajo Nation. “We appreciate that FirstNet answered our call when we requested the deployable asset to provide critical connectivity for federal and tribal officials responding to the COVID-19 crisis.”
FirstNet is built with AT&T in a public-private partnership with the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet Authority). The network is designed to help first responders across the country connect to the critical information they need – when they need it – so they can keep themselves and the communities they serve safe.
With the Navajo Nation’s direction, FirstNet positioned one SatCOLT in Window Rock, Ariz., at the Navajo Nation Administration Building. The other is stationed in New Mexico at the Navajo Nation Department of Transportation Tse Bonito Office.
