UPDATE on FCC Activation of DIRS Reporting for Winter Storm Fern

IMPORTANT UPDATE ON FCC DIRS REPORTING ACTIVATION

On January 23, 2026, the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (PSHSB), in coordination with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), announced the activation of the Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS) and the Mandatory Disaster Response Initiative (MDRI) in certain counties in states impacted by Winter Storm Fern, in all or part of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.  WISPA sent our member operators in those states a message about this activation on January 23.  https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-26-77A1.pdf.

On January 24, 2026, the FCC announced the expansion of this activation to include additional counties in Georgia, Maryland, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Virginia, and West Virginia.  https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-26-83A1.pdf

And on January 25, 2026, PSHSB made more modifications to those DIRS activations.  It expanded the activation of DIRS and the MDRI in the below-referenced areas at the request of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and deactivates DIRS and the MDRI in the below-referenced areas of South Carolina, in response to Winter Storm Fern. https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-26-84A1.pdf.

For further information on this DIRS activation, please contact:

For further information concerning this MDRI activation, please contact:

For more information on the FCC’s response to Winter Storm Fern, please visit https://www.fcc.gov/fern.