911 outage overview:
- Who: The Federal Communications Commission is investigating a recent 911 outage reported in four states.
- Why: The FCC is responsible for ensuring emergency phone networks are available to consumers.
- Where: The 911 outage reportedly prevented emergency calls in areas of Nebraska, Nevada, South Dakota and Texas.
The Federal Communications Commission is investigating a widespread 911 outage that prevented emergency calls in areas of Nebraska, Nevada, South Dakota and Texas, Law360 reports.
On April 17, public safety agencies reported 911 outages in Las Vegas, parts of Texas and Nebraska, and in the entire state of South Dakota. An FCC investigation into the outages was reportedly launched the next day.
The 911 Act requires the FCC to ensure emergency phone networks are available and maintained. The FCC also requires all phone carriers to connect emergency 911 calls.
“When you call 911 in an emergency, it is vital that call goes through,” FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement. “The FCC has already begun investigating the 911 multi-state outages that occurred [April 17] to get to the bottom of the cause and impact.”
FCC investigation launched after 911 outage reported on social media
The widespread 911 outage was first reported on social media at night on April 17. Although callers could not connect with 911 emergency dispatchers, public safety answering points saw the calls and contacted the callers.
On X (formerly known as Twitter), the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department reportedly advised residents to use the text-to-911 service during the 911 outage.
LVMPD said the 911 connectivity was restored within a few hours and everyone who called during the 911 outage had been contacted and provided assistance.
The 911 outage reportedly affected both landlines and mobile phones, but texting to 911 was working in most of the affected locations.
“If these methods are not working in your location, citizens can still reach their local police and county sheriff offices,” the South Dakota Department of Public Safety posted on X.
911 outage may have been caused by light pole installation, telecom company says
Lumen Global Issues Director Mark Molzen told USA Today the outage was caused by a third-party company installing a light pole. Lumen is a telecommunications company that supports 911 and other communication systems globally.
“We restored all services in approximately two and a half hours,” Lumen said. “Our techs identified the issue and worked hard to fix it as quickly as possible. We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate our customers’ patience and understanding.”
AT&T recently announced it would compensate AT&T Wireless customers affected by a Feb. 22 nationwide cellular service outage.
Were you affected by the 911 outage? Tell us about your experience in the comments.
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One thought on FCC investigates recent 911 outage in 4 states
California 911 services lines were out as well April 3rd from 7;43pm to 9:46pm