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In the early hours of Thursday morning, AT&T‘s network experienced a widespread outage, causing disruptions in cellular service and internet connectivity across the country, as reported by the tracking site Downdetector. While some Verizon and T-Mobile customers also faced outages, they appeared to be less extensive compared to AT&T’s.
Scope of AT&T Outages
At around 4 a.m. ET, customers reported over 32,000 AT&T outages, and this number surged to more than 50,000 by 7 a.m., with major issues concentrated in Houston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, and Atlanta. Just before 8 a.m. ET, the outages peaked at more than 71,000. In contrast, T-Mobile reported a little over 1,100 outages, and Verizon had about 3,000 reported outages as of 7 a.m. Thursday.
Response and Actions
AT&T promptly acknowledged the service disruption, stating, “Some of our customers are experiencing wireless service interruptions this morning.” The company assured customers that they were working urgently to restore service and encouraged the use of Wi-Fi calling as an alternative until the issue was resolved.
Verizon clarified that the outages did not directly impact their network but affected their customers trying to reach another carrier experiencing the issue. Similarly, T-Mobile asserted that their network did not suffer an outage and was operating normally. Downdetector numbers likely reflected customers attempting to reach users on other networks.
Potential Emergency Concerns
The widespread outages raised concerns, particularly regarding emergency services. With some people unable to make 911 calls, public safety became a significant worry. San Francisco’s Fire Department was aware of the issue impacting AT&T wireless customers, emphasizing that their 911 center remained operational. They advised AT&T customers unable to connect to 911 to try using a landline or seek assistance from friends or family with a different carrier.
Similar concerns were echoed by emergency services in other locations, including Chicago, Virginia’s Prince William County, and North Carolina’s Charlotte-Mecklenburg, all issuing warnings and acknowledging brief difficulties in reaching 911. Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens acknowledged the issue, stating that the city was actively gathering information to assist in resolving the situation.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the widespread wireless network outages, particularly affecting AT&T users, have prompted urgent responses from telecom providers and raised critical concerns about the accessibility of emergency services. As the situation develops, it is crucial for users to stay informed about updates and alternative communication methods until full service is restored.
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