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MONTELLO, Nev. — Heading into Montello, Nev., is a little bit like stepping back in time, especially when it comes to cellphone service.

“When the tower is not working, we have to pack the baby up, pack our computer, get our phones and chargers, and drive,” explained Tecoma Valley resident Ellen Goldsborough.

It’s a 20-minute drive just to get a cellphone signal to make calls and use the Internet.

“It’s been a very frustrating situation for us,” said Geoff Goldsborough.

In a rural environment, cellphones are more than just a convenience for us. They're security. They're safety. –Geoff Goldsborough, Montello resident

The couple moved to Montello — a small town north of Wendover, about 10 miles from Utah's Box Elder County — three years ago to live off the grid and be debt free. They relied on a tower, the only one nearby, for communications until about six months ago when their AllTell contracts were bought by AT&T. Ever since, they can't haven't been able to get reception.

"In a rural environment, cellphones are more than just a convenience for us,” Geoff Goldsborough said. “They're security. They're safety."

People can get a Verizon signal in town, but when the AT&T tower isn't working even that goes away.

When Montello's cell tower is out, it's a 20-minute drive just to get a cellphone signal to make calls and use the Internet.

In May, the tower didn’t work for several days, according to Tecoma Valley resident Chuck Steele. He has been keeping track of the outages, especially since his wife had a bad fall at home, breaking bones and leaving a bad cut on her forehead. Fortunately, that day, the tower was on.

"If she hadn't been able to call and she had to lay there until the next Tuesday when I came back from Atlanta, I'm pretty sure I would have come home and found her dead on the floor," Steele said.

A spokesman for AT&T said a cellphone tower is ready to go. The problem is the company is still working on the infrastructure to carry the signals from the tower to a switching facility.

In a statement, AT&T says it is "building a new microwave link at a separate site to connect the Montello/Horseshoe Flats cell site with the network. We expect to have the cell site on air in the third quarter." That means the tower will be fully operational sometime in July, August or September. [CLICK HERE to read a statement from AT&T]

JT Trevathan with the Winecup Gamble Ranch is frustrated with the situation. "We were promised good service, and it just hasn't been up to par," he said.

Trevathan helps run a million-acre cattle ranch in the area.

"We operated many, many years before I ever got there, without cellphones,” he said. “We were promised, though, that they were going to be in the area, and we kind of altered our operations for that, and the promises just never came through."

Residents say they just want action.

"The commercials on TV say AT&T services anybody. No. I'd like to grab her and say, 'No you don't,'” Montello postmaster Jo Pearson said.

"It's gotten to the point where enough is enough, and you need to do what you say you're going to do,” Geoff Goldsborough said.

Email:acabrero@ksl.com

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