Cellular Outage Plagues U.S., Disrupting Services from Major Telecom Firms

Cellular Outage Plagues U.S., Disrupting Services from Major Telecom Firms:

Early on Thursday, large portions of the United States experienced a widespread cellular outage, causing disruptions to services provided by leading telecom companies such as AT&T. Thousands of users reported issues with their connectivity, raising concerns across affected regions.

According to data from Downdetector.com, more than 32,000 outage incidents were reported with AT&T’s service around 4:30 a.m. ET. Cities including San Francisco, Houston, and Chicago were particularly impacted by the outage. Users of other major carriers like Verizon, T-Mobile, and UScellular also reported similar issues, indicating a widespread disruption across the telecommunications sector.

Despite the widespread impact, telecom companies have yet to provide a clear explanation for the outages. Reuters reached out to these firms for comment, but responses were not immediately available.

The outage even affected emergency services, as reported by the San Francisco Fire Department on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter). The department highlighted the impact on people’s ability to reach emergency services, including the crucial 911 hotline.

“We are aware of an issue impacting AT&T wireless customers from making and receiving any phone calls (including to 911),” the department stated. It reassured the public that they were actively engaged in monitoring the situation, emphasizing the importance of resolving the issue promptly.

The widespread outage underscores the reliance of modern society on telecommunications infrastructure and the critical need for uninterrupted service, especially during emergencies. As affected users and telecom companies await further updates, efforts are underway to address the disruptions and restore normalcy to cellular services across the affected areas.