Dispatchers at Portland’s Bureau of Emergency Communications had to switch to taking calls manually Friday, after a global IT outage impacted some of the city’s computer systems.
An emergency declaration was declared early Friday morning, after an outage affecting Microsoft’s CrowdStrike cybersecurity software was reported Thursday evening.
Mayor Ted Wheeler’s office announced just after 10 am Friday that the city’s Bureau of Technology Services has “been working around the clock to get affected computers and systems back online.”
“Overnight, some of the City’s computers and servers were affected, including the Bureau of Emergency Communication Computer Aided Dispatch system,” a message from Wheeler’s office states. “After briefly switching to manual call-taking, the CAD system is back up and running as of 6 am Friday. At no time was the community’s ability to make 911 calls impacted.”
Operationally, the interruption to the Bureau of Emergency Communications (BOEC) likely went unnoticed by the public. BOEC continued its automated media alerts of high-priority dispatch calls, and the 9-1-1 system stayed operational through the tech disruption.
City officials warn that Portlanders might encounter delays in communication or service delivery due to the outage. Anyone who needs to reach a city department or file a non-emergency report, should call 3-1-1 or (503) 823-4000.
Wheeler said he’s receiving “regular updates” about the impact to city services, noting technology services and emergency management bureaus are coordinating to closely monitor the situation and any impacts to additional city bureaus.
“The city’s contingency plans for technology outages prepared us for this ongoing situation,” Interim City Administrator Michael Jordan stated Friday, adding the city will continue to operate under a state of emergency until the issue is resolved.
The software outage has wreaked havoc on computer-driven operations at companies in the United States and across the globe, including those used by airlines. By Friday morning, thousands of flights were interrupted or canceled due to software outages.
Hospitals, including Providence Medical Center in Portland, told KGW news that its IT team was able to restore access to digital patient records and clinical documentation for hospital staff, but other internal systems are still impacted.
Locally, the Portland Japanese Garden reported problems with its website and ticketing system due to the IT meltdown.The garden took to social media to advise visitors to purchase tickets on site, with cash only.
