LAKE OF THE OZARKS — AT&T cellular customers at the Lake are frustrated with what they say has been particularly bad cell service across the region. Hundreds have reported issues with their service, with many frustrated AT&T users switching to other service providers, only to discover their new providers actually rent service from local AT&T cell towers.
The reported issues range from dropped calls, spotty calls, dead zones, no or limited 4G internet service and no cell service at all. The problems are especially pronounced during peak summer holidays, when tens of thousands of tourists descend on the Lake of the Ozarks. One of the peak tourist weekends with the most cell reception issues happens during the Lake of the Ozarks Shootout in August.
According to AT&T, dropped calls, failed call attempts, and poor call quality can occur for a number of reasons, including but not limited to terrain, weather, foliage, construction, signal strength, high-usage periods, and more.
The Fix
According to an AT&T representative, the company has received a number of reports of issues with their service. The representative said ongoing maintenance started in the Lake of the Ozarks area on Thursday, Nov. 28. AT&T engineers were working to fix the issues, which were related to the cell towers. The representative said the issues would be corrected as soon as possible and once fixed, service should return back to normal.
A video posted Thursday afternoon on Facebook shows a helicopter hovering above the cell tower at the intersection of Route A and Highway 54, as technicians worked to address the connection issues.
According to the AT&T representative, the company is constantly optimizing its network to deliver the best possible wireless service, by adding new cell tower sites and adding bigger data pipes to increase data speeds, fewer dropped calls, and improved service quality. In areas where Wi-Fi is available but cell signal is poor, many mobile users can use Wi-Fi Calling, which makes it possible to call directly over Wi-Fi and the Internet when service is interrupted.
Mark the Spot
AT&T also offers the “Mark the Spot” app for reporting network issues. App users also receive network improvement notifications. AT&T customers can download the Mark the Spot app in the App Store or Google Play. Upon opening the app, users can select “when did it happen” and follow the prompts from there.
The AT&T Mark the Spot app features also include:
- Network News - Updates on network improvements where you filed reports or saved zip codes
- Tips/Optimize - Tips to optimize performance and network connectivity on your device
- Feedback – To give suggestions for future enhancements
- AT&T Wi-Fi – To find AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots
To report issues via telephone call 800-901-9878.
