IP: New technology to track cell phones in rubble

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- To help in search efforts, a federal agency is asking 
for cell phone or pager numbers of people feared lost in the World Trade 
Center collapse.

"Cutting-edge radio frequency sniffers" from Lucent Technologies will be 
used to track down the devices, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said.

A toll-free, 24-hour-a-day hot line is now operational at 877-348-8579 for 
families of victims to call and provide the numbers of any cell phones or 
pagers victims might have had with them when terrorists attacked the center 
Tuesday morning.

Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, Nextel, Skytel and several other wireless companies 
will help in the operation, FEMA officials said.

The companies are participating in a Wireless Emergency Response Team, 
which is deploying all possible state-of-the-art technologies to support 
search-and-rescue operations at ground zero. The team has been working 
around the clock since Tuesday's attacks, FEMA said.




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