Verizon customers were in turmoil after the cell phone company’s service went down Monday morning.
The outage potentially affected millions of customers who reported that they were unable to call or text and only had an SOS signal.
AT&T and T-Mobile faced similar challenges, with users complaining that they couldn’t access their 5G networks and their phones wouldn’t connect to Wi-Fi.
While AT&T and T-Mobile’s outages appeared to be limited to the Southeast coast, in areas ravaged by Hurricane Helene, Verizon’s complaints soared in the Midwest.
And the outage lasted into the early evening, although Verizon said the problem was starting to clear in some areas.
Verizon users across the country were affected by the outage, but the majority were in the Midwest. Customers complained that their phones were in SOS mode and they were unable to send or receive calls or text messages
Customers of Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile complained about telephone disruptions on Monday
Reports of Verizon being down started around 9:30 a.m. ET, with customers complaining that their cell service was completely down.
Customers across the US – from Phoenix, Arizona to New York City said they only received an SOS signal.
However, those affected appear to be mainly in the Midwest, with people claiming the outage started at different times for each family member’s devices.
People in Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin complained that their phones were stuck in SOS mode, allowing only emergency calls via satellite.
One person posted on Downdetector, a site that monitors online issues, that “texting over WiFi isn’t enabled for some reason and I can’t access the settings to activate it.”
Another person noted that they experienced a complete blackout in Sacramento, California, with no access to calling, texting, or data.
The cell phone company responded to some comments asking for additional information from anyone who said their phone was stuck in SOS mode.
‘I know I would share your concerns if my phone was on SOS too. I’m here to help investigate this and find a solution.” said one response.
Verizon asked the user, “When did this problem first start?” Can you share the nearest side streets and town where this is happening? Then send a DM.’
It remains unclear why people in the Midwest were most affected by the outage and a Verizon spokesperson told DailyMail.com that they were aware of the issue and that “engineers are involved and we are working quickly to identify the problem and solve it.’
The company later posted the same message on X.
AT&T users reported that they were also affected by the outage, complaining that they could not send or receive calls or texts and that their phones would not connect to Wi-Fi. These people were mainly located in areas affected by Hurricane Helene
T-Mobile users on the southeast coast reported being unable to use their 5G or connect to Wi-Fi
AT&T and T-Mobile customers also reported outages, saying they were unable to send or receive calls and texts or access their Wi-Fi.
According to a T-Mobile spokesperson, those living in the southeast, where Hurricane Helene struck last week, were particularly affected.
Heat maps on Downdetector show that the majority of user outage reports are coming from parts of Florida, Georgia, Tennessee and the Carolinas – all states hit by Hurricane Helene last week.
However, the disruption may be more widespread as those affected may not report their experiences.
A T-Mobile spokesperson told DailyMail.com that “based on increased reports of Down Detector related to other carriers, we believe our customers may be experiencing issues connecting to other networks.”
They added: “Outside of some areas where Hurricane Helene recovery continues, our network is operating normally.”
However, an AT&T spokesperson claimed in an email to DailyMail.com that the company is not experiencing any major outages and that its “national network is operating normally.”
They added: ‘Down Detector likely reflects the challenges our customers experience when trying to connect to users on another network.’