Google's web-based email service, Gmail, crashed earlier today, leaving users worldwide unable to send, receive or check any of Google’s cloud based services inclduding spreadsheets and other document storage.
The service was working on iPhones and iPads, meaning only web-based gmail access was affected. However, there are also reports that Google Chrome repeatedly crashed for users, indicating a problem with Google drive.
#gmail was quick to trend worldwide, despite the problem being fixed within 15 minutes of the services shutting down.
Google then issued a statement on its app service page "We’re investigating reports of an issue with Google Mail. We will provide more information shortly."
With a later update apologising for the brief loss of connection: "The problem with Google Mail should be resolved. We apologise for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience and continued support. Please rest assured that system reliability is a top priority at Google, and we are making continuous improvements to make our systems better."