Having trouble calling a loved one? 64 percent of cell sites in Collier are down, third largest outage in Florida

If you live in Collier County and have been unsuccessfully trying to call your loved ones after Hurricane Irma swept through the state, you're not alone.

According to the latest Federal Communications Commission's status report released Wednesday, 64 percent of the county's cell sites are out. Only Monroe and Hendry Counties have a higher outage percentage at 82 and 76 percent, respectively.

Of Collier's 212 cell sites, 137 are out, according to the report. In Lee County, roughly 37 percent of cell sites are out with 129 of 343 out of commission.

In all of Florida, 18 percent of the cell sites are out, the report states.

More: Hurricane Irma: Gas, groceries, restaurants that are re-opening

More: Hurricane Irma: Naples garbage collection resumes Thursday

More: Hurricane Irma: North Naples post office first to resume normal operations

More: Bonita Springs Wonder Gardens face massive tree, animal pen damage after Hurricane Irma

Karen McAllister, a spokeswoman for AT&T, said in an email that the provider is evaluating the effects from Hurricane Irma and that technicians are working to restore service "as quickly and safely as conditions allow."

"Wireless services in some parts of Florida are being affected by significant power outages and other storm damage," she wrote. "Additionally, in Florida some wireline customers may be experiencing issues with their service caused by flooding and storm damage."

AT&T's disaster recovery team is dispatching "more than 20 pieces of recovery equipment in Florida," including four portable cell sites in the Florida Keys, McAllister said.

McAllister said she did not know how many customers in Collier and Lee counties were affected by outages, but said the provider is monitoring the network closely and "coordinating with emergency management officials and local utility companies."

Roni Singleton, a spokeswoman for Sprint, said in an email that the provider is making "really good progress at getting wireless service restored for customers across the state."

Right now 75 percent of the network is operational, she said.

"Given the magnitude of this storm and the widespread commercial power outages that directly impact cell sites, we do have customers in Collier and Lee counties that may be experiencing slower than normal or intermittent service," she wrote. "Some customers may roam and some may not currently have service."

More: PDF: Status report for areas impacted by Hurricane Irma

Many areas continue to present challenges and hazards "due to widespread power outages and debris," Singleton wrote.

"Our emergency response and recovery teams continue to assess the situation and are deploying temporary resources and equipment in the hardest hit areas," she wrote. "We highly encourage customers to use text messaging when possible instead of voice calling because it uses less resources on the network."

Singleton said residents — regardless of their wireless provider — could visit Sprint stores to charge their devices.

Some networks fared better following the storm than others.

Kate Jay, a spokeswoman for Verizon, said in an email the provider's network "continues to withstand the severity of the storm’s impact with close to 90% of our facilities in Florida in service."

Jay said many of those cell sites "are running on backup power" and "massive refueling operations are underway to ensure those sites without commercial power continue in service."

Like others, Verizon is assessing the impact across Florida and moving mobile equipment and personnel into impacted areas.

"Repairs to impacted network facilities are well underway, and in many cases already complete," Jay wrote. "We are in contact with federal, state and local emergency management teams and are coordinating communication needs and efforts with them."

On Marco Island, a cell tower went down but continued processing some calls while laying on its side, Jay said.

"We have a tower on a trailer on the way to get the site fully restored," she wrote.

Verizon stores across the state are reopening for business, Jay said, with more than 40 percent open as of Tuesday.

Residents — regardless of wireless provider — can visit Verizon stores to charge their phones.

Verizon is also working to bring a mobile Wireless Emergency Communications Center to Naples, which will allow residents to charge their devices and access the internet, Jay said.

A T-Mobile spokesperson said in an email that the primary reason for the outages is because there is no power in many parts of the state. Crews haven't been able to access and assess some towers in South Florida because of flooding and blocked roads.

"It's likely going to be a long recovery unfortunately," the T-Mobile spokesperson said. "As the power is restored the recovery will move much faster."