If your phone suddenly flipped to “SOS” in Alabama on Wednesday, you weren’t alone.

A widespread Verizon wireless outage disrupted calls, texts, and data for customers across the country, with Alabama included among states where users reported problems.

Outage reports began climbing around 11:00 a.m. Alabama time, with many customers saying their phones showed “SOS” or “no signal” messages.

On outage-tracking site Downdetector, reports surged into the hundreds of thousands at peak.

Verizon acknowledged an issue impacting wireless voice and data and said engineering teams were working to resolve it.

By mid-afternoon, at least some customers reported service returning, but Verizon said crews were still working on remaining disruptions.

What to do if you’re still stuck in “SOS”

• Turn on Wi-Fi calling (if it’s set up) and use Wi-Fi for calls/texts where possible.

• Try restarting your phone and toggling Airplane Mode on/off (simple, but sometimes forces a clean network handshake).

• If you need help urgently and calls won’t go through: use a landline, borrow a phone on another carrier, or go in person to a nearby police/fire station.

• If you have a newer iPhone and you’re in an area without any cell service, you may have satellite-based emergency options depending on device/support and conditions.

The FCC said it would investigate the incident.

JACKSON COUNTY, Miss. (WLOX) – All westbound lanes were blocked on Interstate 10 before Franklin Creek Road at the Alabama state line due to a crash, according to the Mississippi Department of Transportation.

The crash happened before 6 a.m. Wednesday and was cleared by 7:30 a.m., according to MDOT.

Early-morning drivers experienced delays and were forced to take alternate routes.

You can get real-time traffic updates HERE.

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Ty Simpson said he was entering the NFL Draft on Jan. 7, but then, the Alabama quarterback received NIL offers from multiple teams. The University of Miami reportedly offered him $6.5 million to stay in college another season.

Simpson, though, officially is headed to the pros.

Colin Gay of The Tuscaloosa News reports Tuesday that Simpson has submitted paperwork to the NFL, making him eligible for the 2026 draft.

Gay reports that Simpson’s base salary at Alabama was $400,000 and doubled to $800,000 with incentives.

Simpson is expected to participate in the 2026 Senior Bowl in Mobile, per Gay.

He completed 305 of 473 passes for 3,567 yards with 30 total touchdowns and five interceptions in 2025.