Monday, the forest service and Snohomish County officially re-launched access to 911 service at the Verlot Ranger Station.
In November, Frontier Communications briefly removed the pay phone at the station in the Mt. Baker Snoqualmie Forest. It was then re-installed until an alternative means of emergency communications could be found.
There is little to no cell service along the Mountain Loop Highway until Granite Falls, which raised concerns about emergencies at the Big Four Ice Caves. To get cell service after an emergency at the ice caves is about a 40-minute drive. In July 2015, a woman was killed and five more were injured in a collapse. In July 2010, Grace Tam, 11, was standing outside the ice caves when a large piece of ice, the size of truck, gave way and killed her.