Verizon deploying emergency network equipment to help communities connect during Hurricane Isaias

Verizon is ensuring communication isn't interrupted by Hurricane Isaias.

The company rolled out vital emergency network equipment on Thursday morning ahead of the stormy weather headed toward Alabama and Florida.

The equipment will keep communities and first responders connected during and after the storm.

At Verizon's Alpharetta facility, crews showed CBS News Atlanta how their mobile network units work and how they can be deployed to support communities and first responders during a storm.

Three of them are heading out of Alpharetta bound for Alabama.

"We have three that are at this location today that are going to be moving down to Montgomery, Alabama, closer to the storm and where it's expected to hit so that our field engineers can get to these assets as quickly as possible once the storm rolls through to restore connectivity to our communities and first responders," said Jennifer Gasbarro, associate director of network operations at Verizon.

There is a reason they are moving the equipment before the storm arrives. When severe weather hits, it's not just downed power lines that knock out cell service. Damage to fiber lines can also cut off connections.

"The things we see most often are power outages as well as transport outages, so fiber cuts when power lines go down; transport fiber lines go down. It takes some time to restore connectivity, so we want to be able to get ahead of that. That's why we have generators," she said.

That is where the mobile units come in. Some bring back power. Others help restore network connections.

"You'll have essentially a mast that will go up into the air when we deploy it, then you have all of our equipment inside the trailer here," said Gasbarro about the truck.

It's not just Alabama. Verizon said additional equipment is also going to Florida, putting crews in position to respond on both sides of the system.

"We have assets that are rolling closer to the Florida area where it's expected to come through Florida, and then we have these assets that are headed down to Montgomery to be closer to the Alabama side so that we can restore connectivity in Alabama."

The goal is to have the equipment close enough to move in quickly once conditions are safe.