911 outage impacts all Los Angeles County Sheriff Department stations

Officials with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said that an outage of its emergency 911 system Wednesday impacted all 23 stations.  

The incident, according to an LASD news release, happened just after 11 a.m. and was caused by a dip in electricity voltage from “an external utility company.”  

In the 20 minutes that the disruption lasted, sheriff’s officials said patrol stations, once they were aware of the outage, implemented backup procedures, though no information on what those procedures entail was provided.  

While specific patrol stations were not identified, certain locations reportedly were able to regain 911 service quicker than others.  

It’s not the first time the largest sheriff’s department in the nation has experienced issues with its communication systems.  

On New Year’s Eve, LASD’s computer-aided dispatch program – known as CAD – was not letting deputy personnel log into their mobile computers in patrol cruisers with the new year, the Associated Press reported.  

The issue, which was discovered at around 8 p.m. on Dec. 31, 2024, lasted until Jan. 2.  

In that case, officials said that radio communications and 911 lines remained fully operational, though calls for service were being responded to and manually tracked at the station level.  

As for Wednesday’s outage, the emergency system is currently fully operational. The department added that it is conducting an internal review “to assess the impact” of today’s outage.  

“Despite the temporary disruption to the 9-1-1 system, our deputies swiftly adapted to the situation, demonstrating exceptional dedication in ensuring public safety,” the release stated.