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UPS, FedEx warn of delivery delays

UPS said some of its computer systems in the U.S. and Europe were affected. The shipping giant cautioned that there may be some service delays, but said its drivers were on the roads delivering packages to customers and its cargo flights continued to operate.

FedEx said it was activating emergency contingency plans, but that there could be delays with packages scheduled to be delivered Friday.

Georgia Power experiencing customer service issues; pausing disconnections

Georgia Power, the state’s largest electric utility, said Friday afternoon that it was not experiencing any disruptions to electric service for its 2.7 million customers due to the CrowdStrike outage, but added that some customer service systems have been impaired.

Company spokesman Jacob Hawkins said customers could experience slower response times, and asked that customers only call Georgia Power’s service center to report urgent issues like power outages or electrical safety concerns. Hawkins also said the company is halting all planned disconnections of electricity service until the problems are resolved.

“We appreciate that our customers depend on us for reliable service, and we are working to minimize disruption and return to normal operations as quickly as possible,” Hawkins said in a statement.

— Drew Kann

Metro hospitals open, but some services delayed

Some hospitals in Atlanta are reporting ongoing issues related to the outage, while others say they’ve overcome the problem and have returned to normal operations.

“All Emory Healthcare hospitals and clinics are open despite the global digital outage, according to Jennifer N. Phillips, senior manager for Media Relations.

She said Friday morning that procedures at ambulatory surgery centers and hospitals would be delayed until the systems are stabilized. “We are working diligently to get systems operating to their full capacity. We apologize for the inconvenience to patients, families, and visitors,” Phillips said.

Emory patients are asked to use the MyChart online portal to manage their appointments.

Grady Health System experienced “some minor interruptions overnight due to the Microsoft outage,” according to Danielle Hackett, director of Public Relations. “However, there is no significant impact at this time.”

Wellstar Health System based in Marietta was also affected by the outage, but in the process of recovering. “Our systems are now coming back online,” according to spokeswoman Lauren Rigau. “We remain focused on the health and safety of every patient. Patients who have a procedure scheduled today should contact the facility where their procedure is scheduled to coordinate care.”

Northside Hospital said it is “successfully mitigating the outage issues” and that patient care has been relatively unaffected.

Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta reported it was not experiencing any issues Friday morning.

— Shelia Poole

Outage impacting Georgians returning from RNC

Alice O’Lenick, an alternate GOP delegate from Gwinnett County, was hopeful she would make it back to Atlanta on Friday after a long week at the Republican National Convention.

She woke up about 5 a.m. to get to Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport ahead of her 10:15 a.m. Delta flight, which is delayed more than an hour and a half.

“I’m glad I had an earlier flight because I think the delays and the cancellations will get worse as the day goes on,” O’Lenick said.

Also at the airport, Debbie McCord, an alternate delegate from Columbia County just outside Augusta, chatted with fellow convention-goers as they waited for their flights in a Milwaukee terminal. They appeared to be in good spirits despite the estimated departure times on the screen near the gate showing later and later boarding times.

The line at the counter also grew as anxious travelers started weighing their options.

McCord, who stayed with the other delegates at Lake Lawn Resort in Delavan, Wisconsin, said she woke up about 5 a.m. to finish packing before making the hourlong commute to the airport.

“We didn’t know what traffic would be like coming into the city, so we wanted to leave in plenty of time,” she laughed. “Well, we obviously got here in plenty of time.”

Her flight had been delayed roughly two hours as of 11 a.m. CDT, but McCord said she considers herself lucky after speaking to a delegate from Hawaii who was told he couldn’t get a flight back to Honolulu until Sunday.

― Shaddi Abusaid

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