In the wake of a customer-service backlash involving California firefighters, Verizon is apologizing for slowing down the data speeds of first-responders — and says it will begin offering emergency workers an unlimited data plan to avoid future mishaps.
The telecom giant also said Friday it will refrain from imposing mobile data speed restrictions on first-responders on the entire West Coast for now as they continue battling some of the worst wildfires in the region’s history.
The company extended the same measure to emergency workers in Hawaii on Friday, as Hurricane Lane dumped 31 inches of rainfall on parts of the state.
Verizon’s moves are aimed at soothing mounting outrage sparked by the Santa Clara County Fire Department this week, which said that Verizon had throttled the speeds of firefighters struggling to contain the Mendocino Complex Fire — what has become the largest wildfire California has ever seen.
Verizon told firefighters they needed to switch to a plan that cost more than double what they were currently paying before normal data service would be restored, according to court documents filed Tuesday in an ongoing legal battle over net neutrality.
