Oakland 9-1-1 knocked out nearly 2 days after AT&T theft
Oakland's 9-1-1 system was knocked out for nearly two days starting October 21 after thieves targeted AT&T's infrastructure.
Emergency calls had to be rerouted, and only the most urgent situations could get through.
Service came back on October 23, but the whole episode exposed some big gaps in how Oakland handles emergencies.
Riverside, Santa Barbara 9-1-1 disrupted
The outage didn't just hit Oakland: Riverside County and Santa Barbara faced their own 9-1-1 issues too.
Police Chief James Beere highlighted how risky these disruptions are and said, "This is a perfect example of theft leading to something far more severe and serious that could result in people losing their lives."
The city is working with AT&T and other partners to strengthen its infrastructure, while Beere had contacted the FBI.
Residents are being asked to immediately report suspicious individuals cutting or removing communications cables.