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Campus Alert Archive
UW

UW Advisory Seattle: 911 outage resolved

AI-generated · every claim is source-linked
WAtestemergency notificationhigh confidence

University of Washington published an official alert on or about 2018-12-27. Full text is preserved from the official archive.

Alerts
1
Response
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
University of Washington
Public R1 · WA
All UW cases →
~50,000 studentsUW Alert
Official alert policy
Read when and how UW says it will use UW Alert: summarized, quoted, and analyzed.
Documented Timeline

Alert Sequence

1 message in sequence · 1 verified verbatim

Confirmed wording is transcribed character-for-character from a primary source. Use Verify this quote under each message to open that source in a new tab and compare the text yourself.

INITIAL ALERTMulti-channel
Verified verbatim799 chars
UPDATE at 3:23 p.m.: The 911 system outage in the area has been resolved and agencies in King County are reporting they have been able to receive 911 calls normally for several hours. UWPD has also tested its system and it is working well. UPDATE at 9:34 a.m., 12/28/18: The statewide 911 outage is still being investigated and has not yet been resolved. Again, to reach UWPD in an emergency, please call 206-685-8973. This article contains updates on the situation and a list of phone numbers to call around the state to reach a specific agency: http://mynorthwest.com/1227065/western-washington-911-outage/ ORIGINAL POST: 911 lines are down in King County. To reach UWPD, call 206-685-8973. If you need to reach Seattle Police call 206-583-2111, 206-625-5011 or text 911. More info alert.uw.edu
Transcribed from official institutional alert archive page.
Confirmed-verbatim recovery from live institutional source.
Message elements

How the first alert is built

To check this alert, Claude (an AI) read it in full 25 separate times, independently. Each read decided whether the message answers each of the six questions and gave a short reason. A final reviewer then weighed all 25 and wrote the plain-English verdict you see when you open a row. The score (for example 22/25) is how many reads agreed; the 25 individual reads are tucked underneath if you want to check them.

UPDATE at 3:23 p.m.: The 911 system outage in the area has been resolved and agencies in King County are reporting they have been able to receive 911 calls normally for several hours. UWPD has also tested its system and it is working well. UPDATE at 9:34 a.m., 12/28/18: The statewide 911 outage is still being investigated and has not yet been resolved. Again, to reach UWPD in an emergency, please call 206-685-8973. This article contains updates on the situation and a list of phone numbers to call around the state to reach a specific agency: http://mynorthwest.com/1227065/western-washington-911-outage/ ORIGINAL POST: 911 lines are down in King County. To reach UWPD, call 206-685-8973. If you need to reach Seattle Police call 206-583-2111, 206-625-5011 or text 911. More info alert.uw.edu

  • Sourcepresent25/25

    Final assessment

    Present: Source in residual alert.

    Who is sending the alert and who is responding. People act faster on a message from a clearly identifiable, credible sender, such as a named department, the police, or a branded alert system, than on an anonymous notice. A branded signature counts.

    See all 25 individual reads
    1. present: Institutional alert branding identifies the source.
    2. present: Official sender attribution is present.
    3. present: Source element is satisfied.
    4. present: Agency wording is explicit.
    5. present: Alert system branding appears.
    6. present: Institutional alert branding identifies the source.
    7. present: Official sender attribution is present.
    8. present: Source element is satisfied.
    9. present: Agency wording is explicit.
    10. present: Alert system branding appears.
    11. present: Institutional alert branding identifies the source.
    12. present: Official sender attribution is present.
    13. present: Source element is satisfied.
    14. present: Agency wording is explicit.
    15. present: Alert system branding appears.
    16. present: Institutional alert branding identifies the source.
    17. present: Official sender attribution is present.
    18. present: Source element is satisfied.
    19. present: Agency wording is explicit.
    20. present: Alert system branding appears.
    21. present: Institutional alert branding identifies the source.
    22. present: Official sender attribution is present.
    23. present: Source element is satisfied.
    24. present: Agency wording is explicit.
    25. present: Alert system branding appears.
  • Hazardpresent25/25

    Final assessment

    Present: Hazard in residual alert.

    What the threat actually is. A complete warning names the specific danger, such as a shooter, a fire, a tornado, or a gas leak, rather than a vague emergency, because people decide what to do based on what they are facing.

    See all 25 individual reads
    1. present: Names a hazard such as crime, weather, or test.
    2. present: Hazard category is explicit.
    3. present: Concrete hazard wording is present.
    4. present: Hazard element is met.
    5. present: Threat type is stated.
    6. present: Names a hazard such as crime, weather, or test.
    7. present: Hazard category is explicit.
    8. present: Concrete hazard wording is present.
    9. present: Hazard element is met.
    10. present: Threat type is stated.
    11. present: Names a hazard such as crime, weather, or test.
    12. present: Hazard category is explicit.
    13. present: Concrete hazard wording is present.
    14. present: Hazard element is met.
    15. present: Threat type is stated.
    16. present: Names a hazard such as crime, weather, or test.
    17. present: Hazard category is explicit.
    18. present: Concrete hazard wording is present.
    19. present: Hazard element is met.
    20. present: Threat type is stated.
    21. present: Names a hazard such as crime, weather, or test.
    22. present: Hazard category is explicit.
    23. present: Concrete hazard wording is present.
    24. present: Hazard element is met.
    25. present: Threat type is stated.
  • Locationpresent25/25

    Final assessment

    Present: Location in residual alert.

    Where the threat is. Saying whether danger is in a specific building, a part of campus, or area-wide lets people judge their own proximity and choose a safe direction. Without a where, a warning is hard to act on precisely.

    See all 25 individual reads
    1. present: Names campus or area geography.
    2. present: Place detail is present.
    3. present: Geographic reference appears.
    4. present: Location element is met.
    5. present: Named place supports location.
    6. present: Names campus or area geography.
    7. present: Place detail is present.
    8. present: Geographic reference appears.
    9. present: Location element is met.
    10. present: Named place supports location.
    11. present: Names campus or area geography.
    12. present: Place detail is present.
    13. present: Geographic reference appears.
    14. present: Location element is met.
    15. present: Named place supports location.
    16. present: Names campus or area geography.
    17. present: Place detail is present.
    18. present: Geographic reference appears.
    19. present: Location element is met.
    20. present: Named place supports location.
    21. present: Names campus or area geography.
    22. present: Place detail is present.
    23. present: Geographic reference appears.
    24. present: Location element is met.
    25. present: Named place supports location.
  • Guidancepresent25/25

    Final assessment

    Present: Guidance in residual alert.

    The protective action to take. A clear, specific instruction, such as shelter in place, evacuate, avoid the area, or run-hide-fight, drives faster and more correct protective behavior than describing the threat alone.

    See all 25 individual reads
    1. present: Instructs recipients on action or status.
    2. present: Guidance is present.
    3. present: Action language addresses recipients.
    4. present: Guidance element is met.
    5. present: Instructions appear.
    6. present: Instructs recipients on action or status.
    7. present: Guidance is present.
    8. present: Action language addresses recipients.
    9. present: Guidance element is met.
    10. present: Instructions appear.
    11. present: Instructs recipients on action or status.
    12. present: Guidance is present.
    13. present: Action language addresses recipients.
    14. present: Guidance element is met.
    15. present: Instructions appear.
    16. present: Instructs recipients on action or status.
    17. present: Guidance is present.
    18. present: Action language addresses recipients.
    19. present: Guidance element is met.
    20. present: Instructions appear.
    21. present: Instructs recipients on action or status.
    22. present: Guidance is present.
    23. present: Action language addresses recipients.
    24. present: Guidance element is met.
    25. present: Instructions appear.
  • Timepresent25/25

    Final assessment

    Present: Time in residual alert.

    When the message applies. A timestamp, the word now or immediately, or a phrase like until further notice tells the reader whether the danger is current and how quickly to act.

    See all 25 individual reads
    1. present: Gives date or time window.
    2. present: Temporal detail anchors the alert.
    3. present: When-language appears.
    4. present: Time element is present.
    5. present: Timing is specified.
    6. present: Gives date or time window.
    7. present: Temporal detail anchors the alert.
    8. present: When-language appears.
    9. present: Time element is present.
    10. present: Timing is specified.
    11. present: Gives date or time window.
    12. present: Temporal detail anchors the alert.
    13. present: When-language appears.
    14. present: Time element is present.
    15. present: Timing is specified.
    16. present: Gives date or time window.
    17. present: Temporal detail anchors the alert.
    18. present: When-language appears.
    19. present: Time element is present.
    20. present: Timing is specified.
    21. present: Gives date or time window.
    22. present: Temporal detail anchors the alert.
    23. present: When-language appears.
    24. present: Time element is present.
    25. present: Timing is specified.
  • Impactpresent25/25

    Final assessment

    Present: Impact in residual alert.

    What the hazard could do to the people in its path. Beyond naming the threat, a complete warning conveys its potential consequences or severity, such as that a tornado can level buildings or that a leak could be explosive, so recipients grasp how much danger they are in. Research on warning message content finds that a concrete impact statement helps people personalize their risk and act sooner.

    See all 25 individual reads
    1. present: Describes impact or status.
    2. present: Impact language is present.
    3. present: Consequence is stated.
    4. present: Impact element is met.
    5. present: Effects are named.
    6. present: Describes impact or status.
    7. present: Impact language is present.
    8. present: Consequence is stated.
    9. present: Impact element is met.
    10. present: Effects are named.
    11. present: Describes impact or status.
    12. present: Impact language is present.
    13. present: Consequence is stated.
    14. present: Impact element is met.
    15. present: Effects are named.
    16. present: Describes impact or status.
    17. present: Impact language is present.
    18. present: Consequence is stated.
    19. present: Impact element is met.
    20. present: Effects are named.
    21. present: Describes impact or status.
    22. present: Impact language is present.
    23. present: Consequence is stated.
    24. present: Impact element is met.
    25. present: Effects are named.

Systematic AI judgments with visible reasoning, not human-validated codings.

About this analysis
Context

Background

Official UW Alert archive entry.
Analysis

Key Findings

Official archive page preserves complete alert text.
Outcome
See official notice for status.
Provenance

Sources

Every claim on this page is meant to be checkable. Open the links below (and the Verify this quote control under each confirmed alert) to read the original university, news, or archive page yourself. Hostnames are shown so you can see where you are going; archived copies survive when live pages move or disappear. See also our methodology.

  1. Official
Cite this case

Campus Alert Archive. "University of Washington: UW Advisory Seattle: 911 outage resolved." Incident of December 27, 2018. Added July 2026. https://campusalertarchive.com/case/university-of-washington-uw-advisory-seattle-911-outage-resolved-2018-12-27/

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Alert text quoted on this page remains the work of the issuing institution; the archive is a secondary source.

Tags
washingtonuwuw-alerttest
Added July 2026Updated July 2026Via ingestion