Verizon Releases Statement After 100,000 Outages Reported Nationwide
Verizon has released a statement following widespread outages on their cellular network on Monday morning. According to NBC News, more than 100,000 outages were reported nationwide, causing concern and frustration among Verizon customers.
In their statement, Verizon acknowledged the issue and assured customers that their engineers are working to quickly identify and resolve the problem. This comes after the popular outage tracking site, Downdetector, began receiving a high volume of reports of Verizon outages in Chicago and other areas.
As of 9:30 a.m., Downdetector showed over 4,000 outages in the Chicago area, with the number dropping to around 2,700 by 10:30 a.m. Across the country, the site displayed more than 105,000 outages at 10:30 a.m. The most reported outage locations were Chicago, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Omaha, Cincinnati, Denver, Seattle, and Columbus.
Numerous comments from Verizon users on the site mentioned their phones displaying “SOS” mode intermittently, causing issues with sending and receiving texts or making calls. Similar comments were also seen on Verizon’s social media pages.
Verizon responded to some of these comments, asking for more specific information from affected users. One reply stated, “I know I would share your concern if my phone was in SOS as well. I am here to help find a solution. When did this issue first start happening? Can you share the nearest cross streets and city where this is happening? Please send a DM.”
For those unfamiliar, SOS mode means that the device is not connected to the cellular network but can still make emergency calls through other networks. This feature is only available in the U.S., Australia, and Canada. According to Apple, when an iPhone displays SOS in the status bar, it means that a cellular network is available for emergency calls.
In the event of an emergency call, the user’s location will be shared with emergency services. Additionally, users can set up their phones to send a text message to their emergency contacts with their current location and update them if the location changes.
It is worth noting that on iPhone 14 or later models, Emergency SOS can also be used to send texts to emergency services via satellite when there is no cellular or Wi-Fi coverage available.
Verizon customers were understandably concerned and frustrated by the outages, but many also appreciated the prompt response and efforts from the carrier to resolve the issue. As of now, there is no official explanation for the cause of the outages, but Verizon has assured that they are working towards a solution.
In conclusion, while the outages may have caused inconvenience for some Verizon customers, the carrier’s quick response and efforts to resolve the issue should be appreciated. The SOS mode feature on iPhones also serves as a reminder of the importance of having a reliable network for emergency situations. Let us hope that Verizon is able to quickly resolve the issue and provide uninterrupted service for its customers. This is a developing story, and we will keep you updated.
