Vodafone outage affecting many Netherlands users

Many Vodafone customers said they were having problems accessing the telecom provider’s mobile phone network on Friday morning. Making normal phone calls has been impossible for the large group, and calling the emergency number 112 was also more difficult. Several hospitals also indicated that they are less accessible due to the outage.

Vodafone warned customers, saying that they could connect with 112, but they will not likely be understood by emergency operators. Additionally, the Vodafone customers are also unlikely to be able to hear what the operators are saying. The company suggested calling 112 from a landline instead.

Several hospitals are also Vodafone customers and are therefore not reachable or less accessible. The OLVG in Amsterdam, the Alrijne Hospital in Leiden, Leiderdorp and Alphen aan den Rijn, the Rotterdam Franciscus Gasthuis and the Dijklander Hospital in Purmerend and Hoorn were among the medical facilities indicating this on their website. Rivierenland Hospital in Tiel and Maasstad Hospital in Rotterdam have a temporary replacement telephone number advertised on their site.

Vodafone reported the malfunction early Friday morning. The company said it has found the cause and states that the malfunction is already becoming less serious. In case of problems, Vodafone customers can also call via services such as WhatsApp or FaceTime, Vodafone indicated. Because these are internet services, they are not affected by the outage.