911 system working again in Massachusetts; Cause of outage under investigation
BOSTON - The 911 system is working again in Massachusetts after a temporary outage Tuesday afternoon.
"The Massachusetts 911 system has been restored. The public may now resume calling 911 for emergencies," the State 911 Department said in a statement.
It's still not clear what caused 911 service to go down, but the department said it "continues to investigate the cause of the disruption."
An alert sent to phones after service was restored emphasized that 911 is only for emergencies.
"DO NOT place test calls to 9-1-1," it read.
Alert sent to phones after earlier 911 outage
An emergency alert sent to phones earlier on Tuesday said "9-1-1 SERVICES are currently down Statewide. Delays in public safety response may occur. CALL local Public Safety business line directly if you or others are having an emergency."
The state also provided regional dispatch numbers you can call in an emergency:
Northshore: 978-538-6180
Western Massachusetts: 413-587-5700
Franklin County: 413-625-8326 or 413-625-8468
Western Worcester County: 508-867-5181 or 508-309-5350
Worcester County: 508-829-8420
South Coast, Cape & Islands: 508-397-3192
Greater Boston: 617-946-3080
Logan Airport: 617-568-7301
Metrowest: 508-820-2121
"Calls are not going through"
"Currently the statewide 911 system is down and calls are not going through," Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said at the start of a news conference about Boston Celtics parade plans. "We've been in touch with the state and with all the relevant officials to work on getting this resolved."
Throughout the city, officers were cruising with their blue lights flashing so that people can easily spot them if there is an emergency.
Anyone in need of immediate help can also pull a red fire box alarm or go to a firehouse if 911 is unavailable, public safety leaders suggested.
Major 911 outage in Massachusetts. If you need the Fire Department you can call 508-583-2323 or pull your nearest Fire Alarm Box. If you need the police call 508-941-0200. pic.twitter.com/JOzpzRxG4A
— Brockton Fire (@Brockton_Fire) June 18, 2024
New Hampshire's division of emergency services and communications said their system is "fully operational" and not impacted by the outage. Rhode Island State Police said their 911 system is not affected either.
In February, municipalities across the country reported difficulties with 911 service after an outage affecting AT&T and other cell providers.