Federal Communications Commission DA 26-91 DA 26-91 Released: January 27, 2026 FCC DEACTIVATES THE DISASTER INFORMATION REPORTING SYSTEM AND THE MANDATORY DISASTER RESPONSE INTIATIVE IN CERTAIN STATES FOR COMMUNICATIONS IMPACTED BY WINTER STORM FERN 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. The Federal Communications Commission Activates the Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS) and the Mandatory Disaster Response Initiative (MDRI) In Response To Winter Storm Fern, Public Notice, DA 26-77 (PSHSB Jan. 23, 2026). On January 24, 2026, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) announced the expansion of this activation to include additional counties in Georgia, Maryland, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Virginia, and West Virginia. The Federal Communications Commission Announces the Expansion of the Disaster Information Reporting System and the Mandatory Disaster Response Initiative For Communications Impacted By Winter Storm Fern, Public Notice, DA 26-83 (PSHSB Jan. 24, 2026). On January 25, 2026, the Commission announced the expansion of this activation to include additional counties in Kentucky, as well as to deactivate DIRS in certain counties in South Carolina. The Federal Communications Commission Modifies the Activation of the Disaster Information Reporting System and the Mandatory Disaster Response Initiative For Communications Impacted by Winter Storm Fern, Public Notice, DA 26-84 (PSHSB Jan. 25, 2026). On January 26, 2026, the Commission partially deactivated the DIRS and the MDRI in counties in several states. The Federal Communications Commission Deactivates the Disaster Information Reporting System and the Mandatory Disaster Response Initiative in Several States for Communications Impacted by Winter Storm Fern, Public Notice, DA 26-87 (PSHSB Jan. 26, 2026). By this Public Notice, the Commission, at the request of Kentucky, South Carolina, and Tennessee and in coordination with FEMA, is announcing the deactivation of the DIRS and the MDRI in the following counties impacted by Winter Storm Fern: Kentucky: Allen, Barren, Bell, Breathitt, Butler, Calloway, Casey, Christian, Clay, Clinton, Cumberland, Floyd, Green, Harlan, Hart, Jackson, Knott, Knox, Laurel, Lee, Leslie, Letcher, Lincoln, Logan, Metcalfe, Monroe, Owsley, Perry, Pike, Pulaski, Rockcastle, Russell, Simpson, Taylor, Todd, Trigg, Warren, Wayne, and Whitley South Carolina: Greenville, Oconee, and Pickens Tennessee: Bedford, Cannon, Carroll, Coffee, Crockett, Dekalb, Dyer, Fayette, Franklin, Gibson, Grundy, Haywood, Henry, Houston, Humphreys, Jackson, Lake, Lauderdale, Lewis, Lincoln, Madison, Marion, Moore, Obion, Pickett, Putnam, Sequatchie, Stewart, Tipton, Van Buren, Warren, Weakley, and White Cable communications providers, wireless service providers, wireline communications providers, and interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) providers that provide service in the above-referenced areas are no longer required to report their infrastructure status daily in DIRS for this event. See 47 CFR § 4.18(a)(1). These providers must provide a single, final report to the Commission within 24 hours of release of this Public Notice detailing the state of their infrastructure at the time of DIRS deactivation and an estimated date of resolution of any remaining outages. 47 CFR § 4.18(a)(2). PSHSB encourages other communications providers that voluntarily reported in DIRS to also submit a final DIRS report. As of the release of this Public Notice, cable communications providers, wireless service, wireline communications providers, and interconnected VoIP providers that provide service in the above-referenced areas must resume making submissions in the Network Outage Reporting System (NORS) concerning any incidents that are reportable under those rules. See 47 CFR § 4.18(b). DIRS AND MDRI REMAIN ACTIVATED IN: Mississippi: Adams, Alcorn, Amite, Attala, Benton, Bolivar, Calhoun, Carroll, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Claiborne, Clarke, Clay, Coahoma, Copiah, Covington, DeSoto, Franklin, Grenada, Hinds, Holmes, Humphreys, Itawamba, Issaquena, Jasper, Jefferson, Jefferson Davis, Jones, Kemper, Lafayette, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Leake, Lee, Leflore, Lincoln, Lowndes, Madison, Marion, Marshall, Monroe, Montgomery, Neshoba, Newton, Noxubee, Oktibbeha, Panola, Pike, Pontotoc, Prentiss, Quitman, Rankin, Scott, Sharkey, Simpson, Smith, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tishomingo, Tippah, Tunica, Union, Warren, Washington, Wayne, Webster, Winston, Yalobusha, and Yazoo Tennessee:  Benton, Cheatham, Chester, Clay, Davidson, Decatur, Dickson, Giles, Hardeman, Hardin, Henderson, Hickman, Lawrence, Macon, Marshall, Maury, McNairy, Montgomery, Overton, Perry, Robertson, Rutherford, Shelby, Smith, Sumner, Trousdale, Wayne, Williamson, and Wilson Providers should continue to provide information for the counties in which DIRS and the MDRI remain activated. The FCC continues to monitor this event and may amend the DIRS or the MDRI activation area in the coming days. For further information on this DIRS activation, please contact: Michael Caiafa (202) 418-1311, michael.caiafa@fcc.gov John Healy (215) 847-8094, john.healy@fcc.gov Juan Chapa, (202) 418-0431, juan.chapa@fcc.gov FCC 24/7 Operations Center (202) 418-1122, fccoperationcenter@fcc.gov For further information concerning this MDRI activation, please contact: Justin Cain, (202) 853-7365, (202) 418-2924, justin.cain@fcc.gov Logan Bennett, (202) 418-7790, logan.bennett@fcc.gov FCC 24/7 Operations Center, (202) 418-1122, fccops@fcc.gov For more information on the FCC’s response to Winter Storm Fern, please visit https://www.fcc.gov/fern. - FCC - 2