I'm mad and think I should be now what do I do about it?   

If it were me? I would take it as a test from God, to remember that I must always trust on him, even though thats REALLY REALLY hard when you get down to the little things, like needing help, but Yeah, I would be upset too, that they did that, and I would probably end up filing a complaint. But I would also spend some time with God, and ask him about it, and share with him about it.... Lorl, I don't know if you are christain or not, but for me, its near impossible to seperate my walk with God from worldly life lol. sorry if this is the wrong answer :(

I can only imagine how vulnerable and afraid you were feeling, wheel, and am very sorry you had to go through that. Of course you have a right to be angry. Considering that your phone is your lifeline, the company should have let you know that an interruption to your telephone service was a possibility.

Yes, in your circumstances, I would definitely write to your telephone provider. Paragraphs 2 and 3 of what you wrote here, explain the situation very well. I would add that you expect to be notified in advance if there is ever a possibility of another interruption to your telephone service.

Well. I recomend Anger Managment classes, But 1st if i were u i would try to control it for a while

There are times when lets face it service goes down, it could be something that is like the situation you have described and because of this, yes as a matter of courtesy a notice should have been sent not just to you but to everyone in the building, since you are PAYING for the service, if they are going to interupt the service they should in fact notify EVERYONE.

Regardless of being in a wheelchair or not.

Now the other side of this, is have you at any time informed the phone company of the importance of the phone line, and why you have special needs that makes it vital that you are not with out phone service?


If you have notified them and can verify this such copy of some thing sent in writting, which I do think you should send to the phone company certified return reciept so that in the future you can be protected legally, should something like this happen.

However reality is there are times when phone lines go down, someone hits a telephone pole, ice storm causes damange, or just old age. So that while in this particular instance when the phone company knew there would be possiblity of people being with out phone service in a specific area they should have notified those who pay for the service but it is not as realistically feasible as it once was.

When the phone company worked on the phone every one knew it was ma bell, now your service provider may be ATT but the company working on the phone lines might Verizon.

SO now what? Verizon has to work on lines and it makes sense that power is not goin to go through the lines while they are being worked on, so now this could mean that the people who use verizon were notified of possible loss, but those who say used AT&T or another service provider wouldn't have been notified.

With the things that a cell phone can do today it may be a good idea for you to get a cell phone.

Before you mention that this is not a good idea for you, my niece also in a power wheel chair and also somewhat visually impaired and not able to say type up what you have on the computer, has a cell phone. She is home alone at times, she has a land line, and can not properly work a cell phone it is very difficult for her to do so because she has extremely limited use of left hand, and the visuals since the cell phone is so small, she can't really see it very well


What we have done was programed the phone with speed dial so she literally only has to flip the phone open and press the first button number to get help.

This way if for some reason the land line phone goes down, and she is home alone, she is not stranded as you were.

So I get and understand where your anger, frustration and very real panic came from, there are going to be times when things happen to phone lines that are beyond your control and yes beyond the control of the phone company, such as losing the line because of loss of power or someone hitting a pole, weather, or other unforseen problems.

I do feel that it is a matter of courtesy expecially since as you said it was work that affected residents of a particular building, So put something in the mail saying, that work will be done on such and such a date at such and such a time, and you may be temporarily with out service for hour or 4 hours or what ever time frame they had.

So they were wrong. Depending on who was responsible for the repair problem it could be the service was done due to UNPLANNED repairs that you were not aware of, if this is the case there is very little you can do about it.

It would however be a good idea to get something in writing explaining your situation and the need for phone service and that they need to let you know about any PLANNED repairs or work that may interupt your service so you can take appropriate steps to ensure your safety and well being.

I would also suggest getting the cheapest cell phone possible so you don't have this problem in the future of being completely cut off.

The other thing is something you need to think about you said you paniced, but you are in an apartment building, you use a power chair, and you do have a service dog.

You had ways out you were not isolated, you could have left the building, with the dog, there is little doubt at the loyalty of most dogs but service dogs from what I have seen are exceptionally devoted and protective of their companions. This offers you a measure of safety and protection no matter where you go.

But since you are in an apartment building, and the service went down, get the dog, go to the nearest apartment and yell if need be.

Oh and in an emergency, yell fire it gets people's attention faster than anything you can imagine.

So perhaps having a plan should some kind of unplanned service interuption happen again may help you not panic so much when it does happen, and notifying the phone company of your requirements in writing means you have measure of protection.

My uncle's health was such that the phone company had to ensure he had service regardless so he could call out for medical assistance if needed. I know most utility companies will work with people with disabilities for the very simple reason they do not want to end up on the local news as being the one who is mistreating a person with disabilities.


Good luck in finding a solution that works for you.

Oh depending on what type of internet access you have if it is dsl, or broadband, find out about if not a cell phone as back up, then magic jack as back up it cost 20 dollars a year for service and there is no limit to usa calling.

I have not had land lines for a long time I use cell only, but my niece comes to stay with me for this reason I got the magic jack and if she is over and I need to run out I know she has a phone she can use.

I can understand. As a wheelchair user myself I depend on the phone too especially if no ones here and its just me and the cat. My phone company knows that I am disabled. I told them so that they would know that it was a emergency if they ever had to do work on my building and they would let me know. If Canada has such a registration system you should register.

Also I have a cellphone for backup in just these sort of situations. If you don't have a cellphone I would recommend you getting one. In America, there are special programs that allow low income people to get cellphones cheap and in some cases free. I don't know if Canada has those programs although I would imagine they would because they are so far ahead of us in other matters like health care.

Always easy for everyone to give advice but this is a very frightening experience to someone who can't walk and no way to get help. I'm afraid we live in a world where people are loosing compassion and common sense for fellow man. Take care.

I can understand how scary that would be. I would contact the phone company and talk to a superviser and explain the situation. I'd also suggest that maybe you get a cheap cell phone. I don't know where you live but some areas actually give you a cell phone for emergency use only when you are disabled. I'm not positive but I'm thinking it was Verizon who does this? But mainly I would make sure the phone company has you listed as "priority" service. I know being disabled myself I've made sure my electric company knows this. Because I cannot survive for long without AC in the summer.

u have every right to be mad & upset. sounds like your phone co. is about like the one we have here. i have had more trouble w/the phone co. here than all the other utilities put together. they should inform u anytime u are going to be out of service. i certainly would address the problem w/the company all the way to the top if i had to.i would call & ask for the top dog & let him have it w/both barrels. good luck.

I understand why you were angry and scared, but I honestly don't think you'll get much sympathy from the phone company. I worked in billing for a HUGE company and when people would call with complaints like that, we might give them credit for the day their service was interrupted, but not much else. And the credits wren't much. Usually around a dollar and some change.
Calm down, and remember, it may have been scary, but you made it through just fine. I would definately bring it to the company's attention that you will need to be notified if this happens again. Use this experience to grow. I mean, think...you were scared to death, mad as he** and didn't know what to do...but everything turned out fine. Let this show you that you are stronger than you thought. I totally understand that 15 minutes could mean the difference between life and death, but the same is true for everyone, not just you. Anyone in your building could have had a serious emergency and been unconscious and not able to get help.
As I said...let the company know you're frustrated, but don't let 15 minutes without a dial tone steam you so bad you can't stand it.

If I was in you situation, I would be absolutely furious. There is no excuse at akll for this to happen and in fact the telephone company should have advised all their customers who live in the same building as you wheel that they were going to be working on the lines.

Personally I would not telephone the company but instead send them a strongly worded letter so there can be no misunderstanding. Also sending it in writing gives you a record of advising them and what you said as well. I personally cannot imagine how it is for you but accept and understand that it could not have been easy. As the telephone is your lifeline, it is only natural that you were seriously concerned when it was not working. Without prior notice that work was going to be done ont he phone lines, you also did not have the opportunity to organise for someone to be with you in case of an emergency.

For several months now my mother-in-law has been living with my partner and I while she waits for hip replacement surgery. She is not in a wheelchair but she has to use a walking frame and a motorised gopher type bike to get around. She has her own home but had a fall one day when she was alone and luckily my partner called around there just as it happened. I know my partner was terrified it could happen again which is why we insisted she move into our place.

Some months ago all the phones in the area went off when someone cut through the cables. It was going to take a couple of days to repair and although my partner has the mobile/cell phone, sevice can be erratic. My brother and sister-in-law were visiting at the time and because my s-i-l has a heart condition and also had a stroke last year, the telephone compoany lent us a satellite phone in case there was an emergency. It was provided free of charge. My s-i-l didn't think it was necessary but everyone else was more comfortable knowing it was available if needed.