How a weBoost Cell Signal Booster Brought Law and Order to the Wild West

As a law enforcement ranger, Jason Bulkley serves as the “eyes and ears” of a remote strip of Arizona wilderness; overseen by the Department of Natural Resources. In the course of a day, Bulkley might find himself searching for a missing hiker or responding to a crime in progress.

Given their federal jurisdiction over public lands, rangers are even called to respond to natural disasters. Jason was sent to Puerto Rico in 2017 to help in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.

Sometimes, his duties involve the protection of irreplaceable ancient artifacts.

“There are a lot of archeological resources out here, so we tend to deal with a lot of that. We get people that come out and dig up relics and graves and that type of thing. So, we’re here to investigate who is involved, look at all the circumstances. We could write a ticket, educate the suspect, or take him to court and charge him criminally.”

Being a fully commissioned peace officer, Jason depends on several key items to complete his tasks and ensure his own personal well-being; while also helping guarantee the safety of others. These include a first-aid kit, his firearm, and a weBoost fleet cell phone signal booster.

To the casual observer, a cell phone signal booster might not seem like standard equipment for a law enforcement ranger. That is, until you realize the obstacles most rangers are up against.

The Challenge

Many times, law enforcement rangers work alone. The arid desert region that Jason patrols is comprised of four million acres of land—80 to 90 percent of which has zero to little cell signal coverage. This lack of cellular connectivity is problematic for a number of obvious reasons.

When a ranger needs to call in to report a wildfire or request backup to apprehend a criminal, the inability to call or text is not only frustrating; it has the potential to be life threatening.

Conducting surveillance and completing an investigation involves importing data and running information on a laptop—which requires an internet connection using a cellular network.

Security camera systems placed around public lands record images and videos that need to be accessed by cellular devices for streaming and viewing purposes—also requiring a cell signal.

For Jason, the need for a cost-effective solution to effectively, efficiently, and safely do his job from inside a patrol vehicle was obvious—particularly since his work routinely placed him in some of the nation’s most remote locations where cellular connectivity was uncertain at best.

A weBoost in-vehicle cell phone signal booster would prove to be the perfect fit for Jason.

The Solution

Jason had his weBoost fleet cell phone booster professionally installed and hardwired in his patrol vehicle so he could get cell service in remote areas during his daily work.

“It’s funny, you start learning these little locations or spots (in the Arizona wilderness) where you can go and use the cell booster and easily call or send a text. Places where it doesn’t seem you could ever get a signal before or if you did, it was weak at best.”

The other systems in Jason’s patrol car, like his laptop, also benefitted from reliable cell signal.

When the rangers noticed people were stealing the boxes at the self-pay stations on Bureau of Land Management property, Jason came up with an idea. Since the campground area had poor cell coverage, it hampered the performance of the security camera’s wireless MiFi connection. To fix this problem, Jason had a weBoost cell phone booster installed on the camera.

Now, the camera can consistently send video footage for observation back at headquarters.

The Results

Using the fleet vehicle booster has transformed daily work life for Jason.

“I’m able to connect to the law enforcement network through my cellular connection. Same thing with my ability to access the BLM property’s game camera. If I don’t have cell coverage, then I can’t monitor what’s going on at that location. Almost every ranger I know, just because of the locations we work in, wouldn’t have cell coverage without a booster. It really maximizes whatever coverage is there. It’s awesome.”

The investigation into the self-pay station box thefts has also been aided by the ranger’s use of weBoost cell signal boosters. Jason keeps seeing further applications for boosters in the park.

“We’ve been just toying with different ways of trying to send data from locations without good cell phone coverage. Like the boosters you install on ATMs, Redbox, or the vending machines that take payments. Anything that can help get the data where it needs to be.”

For Jason and the other rangers who patrol the remote locations on BLM property, weBoost cell signal booster technology is helping to bring order and justice once again to the true Wild West.

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