The company permitted some emergency officials in the area to keep their cell service, said Roosevelt County Undersheriff John Summers. After the sheriff’s office initially received a notice a couple months ago that they would need to switch providers, Summers said they were later contacted by a company representative who said they would be allowed to keep their coverage as a law enforcement agency.

Still, he added that he knows multiple people whose lines were dropped this month, including those who made the switch from Verizon to AT&T when the other mobile carrier stopped doing business in the area.

Culbertson Republican state Rep. Rhonda Knudsen said she started getting phone calls from worried constituents in Roosevelt, Daniels and Sheridan counties who had received similar notifications earlier this year.

“I do not have AT&T, but even when I was in the Legislative session I had several constituents call,” she said. “Like many areas, most people are reliant just on cellphones. They don’t have land lines anymore in many areas. And also, they don’t have fiber to their home if they’re in a rural area … (so) that includes their internet access as well.”