AT&T customers are unable to make necessary 911 calls to operators in an emergency after a major power outage.
The Context
Outage tracking website Downdetector said there were over 30,000 reports of the outage by 4:30 a.m. ET on Thursday.
AT&T told Newsweek in a statement via email that it was aware of the situation and was working to resolve it.
"Some of our customers are experiencing wireless service interruptions this morning. We are working urgently to restore service to them," the company said. "We encourage the use of Wi-Fi calling until service is restored."
What We Know
Outages have been reported across the country in Texas, Florida, New York and California.
After reports other carriers had been affected. Network provider Verizon told Newsweek in a statement over the phone that "customers experienced issues this morning when calling or texting with customers served by another carrier. We continuing to monitor the situation."
At 11:15 a.m., AT&T told Newsweek: "Some of our customers are experiencing wireless service interruptions this morning. Our network teams took immediate action and so far three-quarters of our network has been restored. We are working as quickly as possible to restore service to remaining customers."
T-Mobile told Newsweek via email: "We did not experience an outage. Our network is operating normally. Downdetector is likely reflecting challenges our customers were having attempting to connect to users on other networks."
Views
The City of Mentor in Ohio said: "Attention all AT&T customers. Please be advised that all AT&T lines are DOWN and that ALL texts and calls to non-emergency and emergency lines ARE NOT GOING THROUGH. Please seek alternatives."
A number of social media messages on sites like X have seen people commenting that they are unable to send messages without a Wi-Fi connection.
"Checking Twitter to see that I'm not crazy and ATT got our phones not working," one user wrote.
Another added: "Is anybody else having issue with their #ATT service? My phone has been on SOS for about 35 minutes!"
Flagler County Sheriff's Office in Florida tweeted: "AT&T is experiencing an outage. Subscribers are unable to call or text 911."
The City of Mentor in Ohio said: "Attention all AT&T customers. Please be advised that all AT&T lines are DOWN and that ALL texts and calls to non-emergency and emergency lines ARE NOT GOING THROUGH. Please seek alternatives."
What's Next
Newsweek has approached AT&T for further comment to clarify what caused the problems with its network.
AT&T says it provides "more than 100 million U.S. consumers with communications experiences across mobile and broadband," according to its website.
Update 02/22/24, 12:23 p.m. ET: This story was updated to include comment from AT&T
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Benjamin Lynch is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is U.S. politics and national affairs and he ... Read more
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