GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A 911 outage affected several West Michigan areas Tuesday afternoon for about an hour, according to dispatch stations.
Calhoun, Kalamazoo, Newaygo and Ottawa counties as well as the city of Grand Rapids all reported that their 911 lines were down around 4 p.m.
By 6 p.m., all dispatches said the issues were resolved.
Calhoun County dispatch said the outage was due to lost connectivity to a 911 phone network that is also used by the majority of the state. Calhoun County said it will work with that company and regulatory agencies to address concerns about widespread outages.
During the outage, counties and the city asked people to call alternate numbers as listed below:
- Calhoun County: 517.293.3911 or text 911
- Grand Rapids: 616.456.3444
- Kalamazoo: 269.488.8911 and selection option 1 or text 911
- Newaygo County: 231.689.5288
- Ottawa County: 616.994.7850
Ottawa County initially reported that they were not receiving 911 calls but around 4:25 p.m. clarified that the line was back up. During the time when it was down, dispatch staff was able to see the numbers trying to call and called them back.
Kent County, which operates independently from the city of Grand Rapids, said that its 911 services were operating normally.
