Oakland power outage impacts 911 calls, exposes problems at communications center

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- A power outage in parts of Oakland on Thursday afternoon impacted 911 calls coming into the Emergency Communications Center. Calls had to be rerouted to the Alameda County Sheriff's Office. The city says as of Friday morning, all phone lines were fully restored and calls are coming in. But it says work is still being done on its automated dispatching system.

This all comes after a recent Alameda County Grand Jury Report highlighted major concerns at the Emergency Communications Center. The report claims that the 911 call center is not prepared for a major disaster, that there isn't enough staff to answer all 911 calls, and that it is in "dire need" of technology upgrades.

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