Flooding at AT&T Hub Disrupts 911 and Phone Services Across Marin County

SAN RAFAEL, Calif. — January 5, 2026 — A critical AT&T communications hub in San Rafael flooded Sunday evening, triggering a widespread outage that knocked out cellphone, landline, and emergency 911 services across much of Marin County in what authorities described as an "unprecedented event."

The disruption began around 8:30 p.m. on January 4, affecting public safety communications, residential phones, and wireless networks throughout the region. San Rafael Police Lt. Scott Eberle confirmed that flooding at the undisclosed AT&T facility caused the failure, impacting police departments, community landlines, wireless service, and even intercom systems.

During the multi-hour outage, residents were advised to visit local fire stations for emergencies or use alternative non-emergency lines, such as the Marin County Sheriff's Office at (415) 479-2311 or San Rafael Police at (415) 485-3393. At least two residents walked into the San Rafael Police Department to report non-functional cellphones, while one arrived in person to alert authorities to a freeway accident involving a relative. Officers responded promptly, with California Highway Patrol already on scene.

Quick-thinking inter-agency cooperation helped mitigate the crisis. The Novato Police Department, unaffected by the outage, began handling diverted landline 911 calls around 10 p.m., followed by wireless calls shortly after. By 11 p.m., Verizon successfully rerouted all emergency calls to San Rafael's dispatch center. AT&T fully resolved the issue by 1 a.m. Monday, restoring normal 911 operations countywide.

The incident coincided with persistent heavy rains and record king tides that inundated low-lying areas of Marin County over the weekend, causing road closures and additional flooding challenges across the North Bay."

The San Rafael Police Department extends its appreciation to its communications staff, support personnel, partner agencies, and the community for their patience during this unprecedented event," the department stated in a release.

No major injuries or unchecked emergencies were reported as a result of the outage, though officials highlighted the vulnerability of critical infrastructure to extreme weather. The event underscores ongoing concerns about telecommunications resilience amid increasingly severe storms in the Bay Area.

17GEN4.com