UPDATED: WashCo 911 Center Unaffected by AT&T Cellular Outage, Cellular Services Coming Back Online

Updated 2/22/2024 10:40 AM to provide additional details from Washington County Government

National News (2/22/2024) – In the early hours of this morning, a widespread outage affected several prominent cellular service providers across the United States, including FirstNet, AT&T, Cricket, Consumer Cellular, and Straight Talk Wireless. Users began reporting disruptions in service around 3:30 am eastern time, with normalcy gradually restored around 8:30 am eastern time. Restarting phones or toggling airplane mode reportedly resolved the issue for some users as early as 8 am.

In an email sent to Washington County residents, Washington County Government stated “Washington County’s 911 Communications Center assures residents that it remains fully functional and ready to respond to emergency calls without interruption.”

Of particular note was the nationwide outage experienced by FirstNet, a specialized high-speed wireless network tailored exclusively for first responders and public safety officials. Created in response to the communication challenges encountered during the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, FirstNet operates on a dedicated Band 14 spectrum, affording priority access to emergency personnel even amid commercial network congestion.

Designed with a suite of features catering to the exigencies of emergency response, FirstNet offers preemption capabilities, priority access to network resources, robust security measures, resilience to outages, and high-speed data transmission. Its availability extends to various public safety entities including law enforcement agencies, fire departments, emergency medical services, search and rescue teams, and public works agencies. While many of these agencies utilize radios in addition to cellular service, the outage does limit their ability to communicate, as well as the ability of citizens to call 911 in case of emergency.

While the cause of the service disruption remains unclear, AT&T acknowledged the issue Thursday morning, stating, “Some of our customers are experiencing wireless service interruptions this morning. We are working urgently to restore service to them. We encourage the use of Wi-Fi calling until service is restored.”

According to Washington County Government, “In the event of difficulties reaching 911 for AT&T customers, alternative measures such as using a landline, texting 9-1-1 or seeking assistance from friends or family with different carriers are recommended.” The county email went on to state that “Individuals experiencing cell service issues in Washington County can also utilize their phone’s SOS/Emergency call function. This feature has the capability to leverage nearby networks, potentially allowing connections through alternative working cell service providers.”

This is a developing story and will be updated as additional information becomes available.

Story by multiple RFHC contributors.