NHS patients have been warned that GP services “cannot resume immediately” and stranded holidaymakers have been told it could take “days” to arrive at their destinations as the fallout from Friday’s global IT outage continues.
CrowdStrike, the cybersecurity firm at the center of the crisis, said Sunday it had implemented a fix for the “defect” in its software that has caused chaos across the globe for companies that use Microsoft operating systems.
But the disruption has led to a backlog for vital services, including the NHS, which will take some time to clear, the British Medical Association (BMA) said.
“Friday was one of the toughest days in recent memory for GPs across England,” said Dr David Wrigley, vice-chair of GPC England, the representative body for GPs at the BMA.
“Without a clinical IT system, many were forced to revert to pen and paper to help their patients.
“While GPs and their teams worked hard to treat as many patients as possible, much of the work had to be postponed to the following week because they did not have the necessary information available.”
Wrigley said the temporary loss of the Emis patient record system used by GPs had led to a “significant” backlog.
He added: “Even if we could guarantee that it could be fully resolved on Monday, GPs would still need time to make up for the hours lost over the weekend, and NHS England should make it clear to patients that normal services cannot be resumed immediately.
People calling the NHS 111 phone line for urgent health issues that were not life-threatening were told the disruption meant information given to operators may not be passed on to the hospitals or clinics the caller was directed to visit.
Computer systems affected by the CrowdStrike issue, which was caused by a software update on Friday, have largely returned to normal.
But the global aviation network continues to experience disruptions due to overcrowded flight schedules during the summer holidays.
Some stranded airline passengers have been warned that it could take “days” to reach their destination and that there may be no accommodation available for them in the meantime as hotels fill up during the peak summer season.
No-frills airline Wizz Air said its systems were operational again but warned it would “take some time for flight schedules to return to normal”.
The airline said customers could rebook or request a refund through their online accounts.
But it admitted it might not be able to find suitable accommodation for stranded passengers, and promised to compensate customers if they could find a place to stay “within a reasonable time”. It did not specify what it considered reasonable.
Travel company TUI said on Sunday it had cancelled 11 flights from five British airports, after scrapping 32 flights from 10 airports on Friday. The company blamed the CrowdStrike glitch on the airline’s crewing system.
Terrible service from TUI. Arrived at airport at 3am to be told there was no plane or crew for our flight. No apology or anything. Had to go home and wait for an update. £100 return in a taxi, to be told at 10.30pm that flight was cancelled and no alternative flight.
— Rachel Adams (@RachelA95381055) July 21, 2024
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Terrible service from TUI. Arrived at airport at 3am to be told there was no plane or crew for our flight. No apology or anything. Had to go home and wait for an update. £100 return in a taxi, to be told at 10.30pm that flight was cancelled and no alternative flight.
— Rachel Adams (@RachelA95381055) July 21, 2024
Due to the cancellations, some package tours have been cancelled at short notice.
Flight and hotel customers who were due to travel on a cancelled flight can rebook their holiday to another TUI package without paying administration fees, including a 10% “rebooking discount” if the new holiday is more expensive.
Customers will also receive a £200 voucher for future travel, or £100 for children.
Those who wish to cancel will receive a full refund, as well as the voucher. Customers who book flights only will automatically receive a refund for cancelled trips.
Friday was the British The Civil Aviation Authority wrote to airlines reminding them of their obligations to assist travellers with alternative flights, refreshments and accommodation if necessary. It told them that the disruption would likely be considered “extraordinary circumstances”, meaning they would not have to pay any fixed compensation.
Airlines’ fight to return to normal flights was not helped by weather-related restrictions imposed over European airspace on Saturday.
EasyJet said it was not affected by the CrowdStrike outage, but was still struggling with the backlog of flights caused by the bad weather.
Customers could rebook their trip or receive a refund, hotel accommodation and meals if necessary.
On Sunday, CrowdStrike reported that the outage had been identified and “a fix had been implemented.”
“We understand the seriousness of this situation and deeply regret the inconvenience and disruption.”