A wave of global internet outages has hit various institutions in Memphis, including Memphis International Airport and the Memphis Police Department, as travelers and local law enforcement grapple with the complications. The airport authorities have advised travelers on X to check with their airlines before arrival and suggested arriving at least two hours before departure time, as reported by Action News 5.
Technology disruptions continued throughout the day, after an alleged faulty software update was applied by a cybersecurity firm, which seems to have initiated the cascade of technical difficulties affecting banking, airline, and municipal computer systems. American and Delta flights at MEM International Airport witnessed cancellations, and some systems are displaying the dreaded Microsoft recovery screen, although the exact link to the internet outage has not been clarified. Passengers faced slow-moving queues at check-in due to computers being down, and it's been confirmed that a number of pending American, Delta, and United Airlines flights have been grounded, adding to the widespread disruption, according to WREG.
Meanwhile, the FAA has released a statement, obtained by Action News 5, asserting close monitoring of "a technical issue impacting IT systems at U.S. airlines" and that several airlines have sought FAA assistance with ground stops until the matter is resolved. The Memphis Police Department, despite affected systems, has maintained operational capacity—officers remain dispatchable via functioning radio systems, as per Local Memphis.
The city's information technology department is working diligently to restore full system functionality. The Memphis Fire Department remains operational and unaffected in their emergency response by the software problems. According to a statement, City IT specialists are actively addressing the issues affecting critical systems and expect solutions to be implemented today. A spokesperson for the Shelby County Mayor’s Office summarized that the extent of the outage in Memphis might cause some connection issues with IT services indirectly related to the global outage. However, efforts are underway to ensure these services remain accessible, as noted by Action News 5.
Microsoft 365 has acknowledged the disruption and announced via social media that they are investigating an issue affecting users' access to various Microsoft 365 apps and services. CrowdStrike, the company whose software update is linked to the disruptions, has reportedly circulated a fix to address the issue. However, full system recovery may take additional time as computers reboot and services come back online. Fortunately, the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office has not reported any technological problems amid this wider turbulence affecting the area, as mentioned by Local Memphis.
