WASHINGTON — Crews in D.C. and Texas are working furiously to pull communications in Houston back up after historic flooding caused certain cell sites to go dark, compromising communication between first responders.

“With respect to cell sites, there are something like 7,800 cell sites in the affected area. About four percent of those are down at the moment,” said Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission Ajit Pai.

The FCC is issuing special temporary authority to crews in Texas who can put up new cell towers, allowing dispatchers to better locate victims and send help faster.

“It’s going to be difficult for repair crews to get into some of these areas to erect the communications infrastructure necessary to make these calls and texts go through,” Pai said.

They’re also bracing existing infrastructure for the next wave of wet weather.

“We want to make sure emergency responders, police, fire and the rest have what they need to keep folks safe,” Pai said.