Don't live in the PNW then. Soil conditions make undergrounding utilities very expensive, and there's lots of trees near power lines. My first winter we had a 60 hour stretch with no utility power. The CenturyLink DSL remote terminal has no batteries, so if I lose utility power, I also usually lose internet (but I've had two power outages due to a downed line between the RT and my house so far). Most of the cell towers have batteries, but only 2-4 hours worth and then I've got no comms. My house has a backup generator, but it doesn't serve the well, so if I want water, I've got to drag a portable generator out there. A lot of my neighbors have generators, but not all of them.
Oh, and then there was the time a building contractor accidentally took out the underwater cable connecting CenturyLink to Seattle... turns out they don't have multiple paths for that, that was about 48 hours of no internet for me there too. I remember some cell towers didn't work, but I can't remember if it was by tower or by carrier.
Oh, and then there was the time a building contractor accidentally took out the underwater cable connecting CenturyLink to Seattle... turns out they don't have multiple paths for that, that was about 48 hours of no internet for me there too. I remember some cell towers didn't work, but I can't remember if it was by tower or by carrier.