Verizon has been fined $1.05 million by the FCC for multiple 911 outages in 2022, including one lasting almost two hours that affected several states. The FCC emphasizes the importance of reliable 911 access and is taking action to ensure service providers uphold their responsibilities.
On April 17, temporary outages affected 911 emergency services in Nebraska, Nevada, South Dakota, and Texas. The outages, caused by a fiber line cut during light pole installation in Missouri, prevented some from calling or connecting to 911. Alternatives for contacting emergency services during outages include Text-to-911 (available in 19 states), using non-emergency or alternative numbers for local agencies, and monitoring text alerts or social media notifications from first responders.
