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Problems Connecting Landline Phones With 911 Dispatchers Repaired

Update, 9 p.m.

Dutchess County officials reported that Verizon landline phones in Dutchess, Putnam and Westchester were unable to connect with 911 emergency dispatchers late Thursday afternoon.

Dutchess County officials reported that Verizon landline phones in Dutchess, Putnam and Westchester were unable to connect with 911 emergency dispatchers late Thursday afternoon.

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POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. -- Verizon is reporting it has resolved landline phone users in the 845 area code with Dutchess County 911 dispatch and City of Poughkeepsie 911 in the event of an emergency. 

According to Verizon, the problem involved a software script that impacted the 911 landline truck lines.

Original report, 5 p.m.

POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. -- Late Thursday afternoon, the Dutchess County Department of Emergency Response discovered that landline phone users in the 845 area code cannot currently connect with Dutchess County 911 dispatch or City of Poughkeepsie 911 dispatch in the event of an emergency.

The problem also reportedly affected landline service to 911 dispatchers in Westchester and Putnam counties, officials said in a press statement.

Cell phones can be used to dial 9-1-1, however cell phones are routed to the closest 9-1-1 center depending on location.

Verizon is reporting all landline 911 trunks associated with the 911 phone system are out of service. This impacts all landline phones, regardless of the phone service provider. Verizon is currently investigating the outage and has not provided an estimated repair time.

To connect with the Dutchess County E-9-1-1 Center, dial the 7 digit emergency phone number (845) 471-1414. All calls made to this number route directly into the Dutchess County E-9-1-1 Center. 

To report an Emergency in the City of Poughkeepsie, dial (845) 451-4000 to connect with the City of Poughkeepsie 9-1-1 dispatch center.

The outage has not affected residents in the Town of Northeast or Pine Plains, which are located in the 518 area code. Landline 9-1-1 service has been tested and is working properly in the 518 area code.

Dutchess County Department of Emergency Response is working closely with Verizon to identify the cause of the service disruption that has also impacted Putnam and Westchester counties.

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