Verizon released a statement after more than 100,000 nationwide outages were reported across the cellular carrier’s network Monday morning.
“We are aware of an issue impacting service for some customers,” Verizon said in a statement to NBC News. “Our engineers are engaged and we are working quickly to identify and resolve the issue.”
The statement comes about three hours after the Downdetector site began receiving an influx of reports of Verizon outages in Chicago and beyond.
As of 9:30 a.m., Downdetector showed more than 4,000 Verizon outages in the Chicago area. By around 10:30 a.m., the number of reports had dropped to around 2,700, according to the site.
Nationally, the site showed more than 105,000 Verizon outages as of 10:30 a.m. A Downdetector outage map Monday showed the “most reported” outage locations were Chicago, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Omaha, Cincinnati, Denver, Seattle and Columbus.
Dozens of comments on the site from Verizon users said their phones displayed “SOS” mode intermittently, preventing some from sending or responding to text messages, or making phone calls.
Other comments on Verizon’s social media pages also pointed out that Verizon phones would be in SOS mode.
The operator responded to some comments, sometimes asking for more specific information from those who reported their phone in SOS.
“I know I would share your concern if my phone was also in SOS mode,” said one of Verizon’s responses. “I am here to help you look into this issue and find a solution. When did this issue start occurring? Can you share the nearest cross streets and city where this is occurring? Please send a DM.”
What is SOS mode?
According to Apple, the SOS message appears when “your device is not connected to your cellular network,” but it also means you can make emergency calls through other carrier networks.
The feature is only available in the United States, Australia, and Canada.
“When SOS appears in your iPhone’s status bar, it means that a cellular network is available for emergency calls,” the company says.
Those who call with SOS will be automatically redirected to a local emergency number and their location will be shared with emergency services.
Users can also set their phone so that after making an emergency SOS call, their phone alerts emergency contacts with a text message including their current location – and updates those contacts if that location changes .
“On iPhone 14 or later (all models), you can even use Emergency SOS via Satellite to text emergency services when no cellular and Wi-Fi coverage is available,” says Apple .
This is a developing story that will be updated.
