GEORGETOWN, S.C. (AP) – South Carolina regulators are investigating whether a communications company is spending money properly after a small Georgetown County community didn’t have landline phone service for nearly a month.
People who live in St. Luke say their community is so isolated that cellphone service is spotty and landlines can be a lifesaver.
The Post and Courier of Charleston reports that state Office of Regulatory Staff says Frontier Communications uses aging copper wires instead of fiber optic lines and that’s why it took 24 days to fix the outage.
Rural phone companies get state money to keep up equipment in exchange for providing service. Regulators are asking how Frontier Communications is spending that money.
The Connecticut-based company says it spent the Universal Service Fund money properly and will cooperate with any audit.
