Although the disruption canceled surgeries and grounded flights in the United States, businesses and government offices in Hamilton County largely functioned as normal Friday amid a widespread technology outage that swept the globe.
CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity firm that provides software to thousands of companies worldwide, deployed a faulty update to computers running Microsoft Windows, according to The Associated Press.
(READ MORE: A faulty software update causes havoc worldwide for airlines, hospitals and governments)
HOSPITALS AFFECTED
Erlanger Health announced on its website Friday the temporary disruption required it to cancel all elective surgeries at Erlanger Baroness Hospital, Erlanger East Hospital and Children’s Hospital at Erlanger. Those surgeries would be rescheduled as quickly as possible.
All physician offices remained open, Erlanger said, although the health system warned patients could experience delays.
“Erlanger is actively collaborating with Microsoft to address the situation and restore services as soon as possible,” the system said Friday. “We apologize for any inconvenience caused and appreciate your patience. We will continue to provide updates through our website and social media channels as we work toward a resolution. We value your trust and understanding, and we remain committed to patient safety and delivering exceptional care.”
CHI Memorial health system was also affected by the outage.
“We continue to provide safe, high-quality care to our patients and thank everyone for their patience as our teams take immediate action to restore any impacted systems,” CHI Memorial said in a statement. “Patients will be contacted directly if their appointments are affected.”
Parkridge Health System said it did not feel direct effects of the outage, but it was working with its vendors to understand any issues they could be facing.
“We do not expect the incident to impact our ability to provide care to our patients,” Parkridge said in a statement.
Are you affected?
Are you feeling the impact of the tech outage in Southeast Tennessee or Northwest Georgia? Tell reporter David Floyd at dfloyd@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6249.
GOVERNMENT AGENCIES
Chattanooga spokesperson Eric Holl said in a phone call that city services felt minimal impact from the outage. Some partner agencies have databases that city staff can’t access. Most of the city’s functions run through Google’s software, which has been unaffected.
“We feel fortunate,” he said. “I don’t think there are any services that we aren’t able to offer as a result of this.”
In a social media post, the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office said the county jail has experienced issues with software it uses to complete electronic arrest reports. While the outage did affect the office’s intake procedure, staff were using a backup process, including handwritten arrest reports, to ensure booking operations continue smoothly.
“Please be assured that this incident has not affected the sheriff’s office ability to provide law enforcement services to Hamilton County,” the statement said. “We have backup procedures in place for service, even during technology failures.”
(READ MORE: White House cybersecurity strategy stresses software safety)
Local driver service centers may be unable to process transactions, the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security warned Friday. Hamilton County government was also affected, spokesperson Mary Francis Hoots said in an email.
Scott Fiedler, a spokesperson for the Tennessee Valley Authority, said in a phone call the outage has not affected the power grid or any of the agency’s critical infrastructure. TVA provides electricity for 153 power companies serving 10 million people in Tennessee and parts of six surrounding states.
The outage caused the Hamilton County Election Commission to make some adjustments at early voting sites, Administrator Scott Allen said in a phone call, but the agency has a contingency plan in place through which workers look up voters offline and print out their ballots. The commission’s office off Amnicola Highway was up and running by 8 a.m., he said.
Allen said the election commission learned around 6 a.m. that computers were affected after the first employee arrived at the office. None of the voting equipment is connected to the internet, Allen said.
“It didn’t stop us this morning,” he said. “The process is a little slower for voters because it’s more of a manual process, but voters are in and out in a few minutes.”
The agency has a locally stored voter database that updates at the end of every day with who’s already voted and where people are registered. The commission implemented the locally stored database several years ago, and it’s been used one other time during an internet outage.
“It went well,” Sam Jaffee said after voting. “Just as straightforward as it always is. Fill out the forms. Get my ballot. Vote. Submit.”
(READ MORE: Internet outage: Airlines, businesses, border crossings hit by global tech disruption)
TRAVEL ISSUES
The outage upended air travel across the United States, with most airlines attributing the problems to their booking systems, according to The Associated Press.
“Passengers are advised to monitor flights and follow the guidelines and directives of the airline they are traveling with,” the Chattanooga Airport said in a statement. “We thank you for your patience as they work to resolve their issues and for choosing to fly CHA.”
Staff photo by Olivia Ross / On Friday, a screen shows flight departure statuses at the Chattanooga Airport.Staff Writer Shannon Coan contributed to this story.
Contact David Floyd at dfloyd@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6249.