Thousands of users of Verizon, the US telecom giant, reported outage with the network on Tuesday afternoon, according to Down Detector, a platform that tracks such outages based on users' reports. Verizon confirmed to Ht.com that services have now been fully restored, as of 4:00pm EDT.
Verizon users reported that their phones went into SOS Mode, unable to connect with Verizon's network. As of this writing, more than 3000 users are reporting issues with Verizon on Down Detector.
The graph of the outage showed that Missouri, Arizona, Kansas and New York were severely affected by the outage. A user from St. Louis specifically complained to Verizon about their phone being stuck on SOS mode.
"Verizon what's going on in STL why my phone in SOS is," the user wrote. The Verizon support account responded, directing viewers to the DM on social media.
The graph on Down Detector showed that the outage started around 2:25pm EDT. It peaked 2:32pm EDT with close to 2,500 reports, despite initial estimates placing it above 3000. Below is a graph of the same.
Verizon Responds To Brief Outage
A spokesperson of Verizon Communications reached out to Ht.com acknowledging the outage. Steve Van Dinter, Senior Director, Local Area Communications, New Jersey, stated that the outage was concentrated in Missouri and Kansas. The company's engineers are engaged to resolve the issues.
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"We are aware of an issue impacting service for some customers in parts of Missouri and Kansas," Van Dinter said. Our engineers are engaged and we are working quickly to identify and resolve the issue. Please visit our Check Network Status page for updates on service in your area. We know how much people rely on Verizon and apologize for any inconvenience. We appreciate your patience."
In a follow-up, Van Dinter confirmed that services have now been restored. “Earlier today, an issue impacted service for some customers in parts of Missouri and Kansas,” Van Dinter added. “Our engineers have restored service for our customers. Customers who continue to be impacted should power cycle their devices.”
Verizon Communications boasts a massive 146.8 million to 147 million users' base in the United States, making it one of the largest data and phone networks in the country.